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Mijas Costa
Vol. 13 Issue 331 www.theolivepress.es November 20th - December 3rd 2019
JAILED: Grinan and Chaves finally face crimes
Justice at last
IT is the biggest public money scandal in Spanish history, estimated at nearly €1 billion. Now, finally, two former Andalucia leaders are heading to prison and banned from office for their links to the disgraceful ERE scandal. Ex-Junta president Jose Antonio Grinan has been sentenced to six years jail and banned from office for 15 years, while predecessor Manuel Chaves has been banned from office for nine years. The pair oversaw the scheme, which saw the shocking theft of at least €680 million - dubbed the ‘Reptile fund’ - meant to go to companies in trouble and to stimulate employment. A further 17 politicians and businessmen who worked with the Junta received a total of 86 years in prison between them, a Sevilla court has ruled.
Bent
This included eight years for former Employment minister Javier Guerrero, who helped set up the scheme which embezzled money from 2000 to 2009. The bent politician was particularly guilty, having set up two bogus companies with his former driver - dubbed the ‘Cocaine Chauffeur’ - defrauding over €700,000 between them. The pair are said to have spent much of their afternoons spending the money taking cocaine with prostitutes at brothels near Sevilla. The final 1,700-page report, issued by a panel of judges, announced that 13 of those accused received six to eight years in prison while all have been banned from public office for at least 10 years. A further three, José Antonio Viera, Francisco Vallejo and Carmen Martínez-Aguayo were also ministers. In a major embarrassment for the PSOE party, Chaves and Grinan led the Junta for a combined 23 years, two thirds of the regional parliament’s history. The pair had been icons of the party, while Chaves went on to become a minister in both the Spanish govContinues on Page 5
A journey you won’t forget AUTUMN DREAM: The road to Ronda through the Genal Valley
A
ll about
S
errania de Ronda
www.theolivepress.es
November 20th - December 3rd 2019
Bewitched by fairytale Ronda Y Vol. 13
Issue 331
This picture-perfect mountain town has charmed many an artist in time past and many famous people recently yet still retains its mythical appeal. Robert Firth shares the magic
OU don’t have to be writing the next award-winning novel or screenplay to appreciate Ronda, but it helps. Artists from Ernest Hemingway to Orson Wells – both commemorated with busts in the town – have made pilgrimages to Ronda for centuries in search of artistic inspiration. And it’s easy to see why from the moment you begin your journey here in the south east – just outside the town’s walls. For this is the only place you should begin your trip to Ronda. To really understand this historic medina, you have to first leave it and start again outside the town’s walls. From this vantage point, Ronda – dripping with history – perches monumentally above the olive and auburn countryside it overlooks. And through winding dirt tracks by ramshackle farms tended by shepherds with crooks in the shadows of the fortress and up stone steps towards the town, you catch a glimpse of the mythic beauty that transfixed so many artistic geniuses. So stunning is Ronda’s puente nuevo, bridging the canyon the town is built over, that Germany’s most famous poet, Rainer Maria Rike, credited his stay at the Reina Victoria hotel overlooking the ravine with curing his writer’s block.
Remote
Around almost every corner is tucked a stunning church, immaculately preserved historical ruins or a viewing point over postcard landscapes. If entering the town the proper way from the south, a stop-off at the Arab Baths is almost obligatory. Indeed passing through the exceptionally well-preserved 13th century hammam was mandatory for visitors to the Muslim medina when the town was a stronghold of the Emirate of Granada. It was one of the last places to fall to Catholic rule. After the conquest, its remote location in the Sierra de las Nieves National Park made it a refuge for Muslims fleeing perRECENT VISITORS: J.K Rowling, Anne Hathaway,
Gordan Ramsay, Doctor Who star Jodie
Whittaker and Ricky Gervais
Continues next page
It’s time to head to the hills for a classic winter break... our 16-page Ronda special gives you the inside track
GOING DUTCH EXCLUSIVE By Laurence Dollimore
THE Costa del Sol is facing a Christmas drugs war. A vicious battle between rival gangs is seeing a new breed of Dutch gangsters take over the lucrative trade, it can be revealed. According to a hard-hitting new book, Irish and British mafia gangs are being supplanted by Dutch gangs of Arabic descent from Amsterdam. The book, Costa del Coke, reveals that legendary Irish mafia clan the Kinahans have been forced to strike a deal with one of the groups. Journalists Ivo Teulings, 52, and Arthur Van Amerongen, 60, have spent over a year researching the trafficking business along Spain’s southern
‘Ruthless’ Irish and Dutch gangs have teamed up on the Costa del Sol as third suspected murder occurs in three months
coast. As well as spending time in Morocco they also joined Policia Nacional patrols in La Linea and the coastguard operations in Algeciras. They talked to hundreds of criminals involved in the drugs trade, including gypsies, Moroccans, retired smugglers, but also members of the police
force. “Moroccans, mainly Dutch Moroccans, are taking over the cocaine business,” journalist Tuelings told the Olive Press. “The Dutch are a new generation that doesn’t mind using extreme violence. “The bosses are in their 30s and mostly live in Dubai, while their soldiers are a lot younger, sometimes teenagers. “They are working together with the Irish mafia, the Kinahans, the majority of whom have moved to Dubai.” It comes at a time of increasing drug-related violence along the Costa del Sol, with a suspected murder last week of an Arabic man in Marbella. This followed the discovery of a body of a 39-year-old man in a ditch in Mijas in September and the body of a Bulgarian dumped on the Istan road with several gunshot wounds two weeks ago. The new gang war comes three years since the infamous Kinahan-Hutch feud between two rival Dublin gangs saw several killed in Malaga and Ireland. However, things slowed down massively after Ireland’s Gardai and Spanish authorities launched a special task force to crack down on
KILLED: Three murders have occured in recent months
the gangs and the Kinahans mostly moved their operation to Dubai. It was this lack of Irish presence, experts believe, which caused a power vacuum in the drug trafficking business, leading to the situation today. “Competitors are coming in from all over the world, as everybody wants a piece of the cake,” continued Teulings. “While the Dutch Moroccans have had the edge, they are now involved in their own drugs war right now with a huge civil war going on in The Netherlands right now.” A Dutchman killed in Torremolinos last year is believed to be the first victim of that struggle. Hamza Ziani was reportedly in a conflict with the Netherlands’ most wanted criminal Ridouan Taghi, who allegedly ordered around 20 deaths to protect his €100 million cocaine empire. “I would say the Ndraghetta from Italy and rival Colombian gangs – who work with the MoSee pages 5 & 45 roccans – are set to become the biggest forces at play.” Costa del Coke is set to be translated for an English edition in the new year.
Tel: 952 147 834
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TM
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CRIME
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NEWS IN BRIEF
Cafe con getcha A DRUG dealer who arranged to meet his pal in a Marbella cafe before shooting him in the neck has been found guilty of murder.
Fishy business THE Guardia Civil has seized more than 5,000 kilos of fish from a Morrocan truck in Sevilla, including turbot, sole and mullet.
Drugball EX-Malaga FC player Koke has been arrested in Estepona on suspicion of leading a major drug trafficking operation on the Costa del Sol.
Puppy love A HEARTLESS couple who dumped their dog in Granada and then drove off as it chased them have been arrested by police after being caught on camera.
Boat load EXCLUSIVE By Robert Firth
A COWBOY builder has fled to the UK with thousands of euros an expat paid him to fit air conditioning in her new dream home. Expat Nicola Brookes claims she is owed €1,709 after Air Care Gibraltar director Andrew Maddison returned to Britain. The Casares resident has called in police to probe the case, after the former Duquesa resident suddenly upped sticks. She claims she has also had to fork out €700 on legal fees and changing the locks. However, this was firmly denied by a so-called ‘accounts manager’ of the firm Phillip Charlton, who threatened
A HIGH speed boat carrying illegal immigrants has run aground on Torremolinos’s main beach. Shocked beachgoers watched as the vessel, which is normally used to carry hashish, burst ashore at around 9:45am. The migrants made a run for it as eye witnesses contacted police. Fast-moving rigid
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NEWS
Hospitals, courts and more
October 23rd - November
5th 2019
9
Lighting up
A BRAND new hospital is to be A total built next year in Malaga. of €2.6 been set aside for million has Malaga will receive A whopping €208million initial stud- of has ies for the hospital. been set aside to any province in the most build the fa- Other followed by Cadiz Andalucia, cility in the car park Malaga projects to and Sevilla. get a Mijas meanwhile isting Hospital Civil. of the ex- boost include Antequera’s A BRITISH teenager port, which has received dry tal of €6.5 millionwill get a toA new metro line to spend on is being con- injection a cash two schools, who plunged seven structed underneath of €13million and floors to his the new new Torremolinos the is being set while €500,000 death in Andalucia hospital. aside to has been named as Max McMullen. with €1.9 million law courts, CIO catering school reopen the reserved. nearby. The 15-year-old, who is believed to have attended Bath’s Beechen Cliff school, died where he was an in Cordoba, exchange student. His tragic death came just two days into a week-long trip with other students being investigated. and is still player at Walcot The teen, a was fixing a brokenRugby Club, house of the host blind in the family he was MALAGA has staying in, according stalling its 2019started inLocal sources said to reports. the exchange A BRITISH decorations, ahead Christmas trip’s travel insurer switch on at the of the big is now re- mysteriouslyfather and son who sponsible for repatriating EXCLUSIVE end of Novanished from vember. By Laurence Dollimore the the Costa del student’s body. Police Cordoba lighting said there killed during Sol were likely is no evidence to company, a drug deal gone suggest crimi- wrong. Illuminations Ximenez, nality. “I think Liam’s is in charge of the city’s died. I think That’s what the family display of Dan- he’s been killed,” she revealed. this year. iel Poole, 46, and his son, Liam, “I hope he’s not at the As ever, Calle Larios 22, fear, having not bottom of the sea . . . I hope. will reheard main the focal from them since April. A CHARITY is gearing point of the he is but I want the People say seasonal light display, up for its Liam’s chance for annual awareness despite day for peo- Catney, grandmother Kathy people to give him back to me,” the town having ple with Epidermolysis 63, believes they recently sold the street’s famous were she added. bullosa, probably shot a rare genetic condition, light tunwhile on a trip “I think his dad got nel to Liverpool. also from West into some no good but known as Butterfly Skin. DEB- where theySussex to Estepona, bother and Liam got caught in questions. we just didn’t ask while his RA Butterfly Children’s father were last seen on the crossfire.” Charity April 2. “He was going to mechanic with Daniel, a car hopes to raise more She continued: Spain to do convictions for the condition awareness suspected [Daniel]“We always some sort of deal. Whether for drug dealing, is related to which causthe notorious London-based was up to that was property es skin to be extremely or drugs, I Richardson fragreally didn’t know,” ile - as soon as a she told his mother’s crime family on baby leaves the Times. the womb. The lightest side. touch The pair had made Charlie and EddieGang leaders causes painful open Richardson to Malaga in the three trips were alleged to covering up to 80% wounds, have tortured SPAIN has banned four months victims before they vanished. two chilleading to a life of of the body, with bolt cutters disability and and dren’s sun creams after they A family source told pliers severe pain. were labelled ‘dangerous’ the Olive The during the 1960s. Press in June they by a AN Irish holiday ‘knew the the Olive Press can reveal that consumer group. pair were dead’. family received a slammed a group maker has ransom It came after the creams, of Spanish “We will never see demand for over teenagers who ‘tried €100,000 the which claimed to them again, day they were obviously be Factor after Daniel and rabbit’ and abused to kill a 50, turned out to be Liam disdoing appeared. something illegal SPF 15 imals on the Costaother anand 30, after studies south,” he said. and it’s gone The ransom request by conchickens and ducks del Sol. was never sumer group OCU. “Liam was such a made balls’ at the park like rugby good boy, he the public, but police traced Both creams by Isdin in Palermo was smart and has call to a phone in and Park in Benalmadena. Babaria have now obviously The Morocco. been influenced been withfamily’s story Hundreds of people drawn have liked into this mess, it’sand dragged BBC One’s Insidefeatured on Agencyfrom sale after Spain’s and shared a Facebook so tragic.” Out with of Medicines The young computer Glen Campbell, and by Boyd, a professional post Medical cian had no criminal techni- shown in the UK which was confirmedProducts (AEMPS) dog groomer, that shows last week record, featured the findings. one of the Olive Press. and the teens gripping Phil Boyd, 52, a rabbit. gowan, was on from Ballya week-long break when he witnessed the trio. The dad-of-one THE friends and ive Press: “The told the Olmissing British family of a tourist have turned his back lad grabbed THE remains of said they are relieved to wring its former dic- has neck. after he tator Francisco Franco been was found safe and are set site since at the controversial “If my wife Sharon exhumed from the his death in 1975. Clifton Kandler, 57,well. and I hadn’t shouted from Lonthe Fallen this week. Valley of But many Spaniards don had disappeared feel they would have at the boys that the basilica, His body is set to while hiking with some cut the rabbit with open, they are bad friends in entered and placed be finally 150-metre cross above,has a Malaga. kids. Something must be done.” ily mausoleum in in a fam- rifies Franco rather gloThe dad-of-two was Madrid this commemorating than found by Thursday. search and rescue of 500,000 peoplethe deaths The former dictator’s being visiting theteams, before who died body during the Spanish Malaga for a twistedhospital in civil war. complex have not general check-up. ankle and yet been completed. damaged his ankle Clifton had after trying THE new luxury In the agreement to walk down a with Malaga ravine, which let on Malaga’s designer out- town hall, it became impassable was a strict conPlaza Mayor due a se- did not open as planned dition that the project ries of waterfalls. must be after 100% finished He spent the it failed to acquire night on the hillside or its permit the neces- operate would be invalid. to tracing his steps the before re- sary permits. next morn- The Mcarthurglen Although it had been ing. He tried following Designer billed as pipe down but again a water Outlet complex, due to open having 100 stores, there are went over on October 22, now just 61, and on his ankle and four restauA SELFISH mother couldn’t walk it will ‘open soon’,has now said rants. anymore. He spent left her but failed to The five-year-old son a few hours give a concrete date. largest store will crying alone calling for help be Ralph on a balcony, while she parteams found himbefore rescue Issues have arisen over the Lauren Polo, which will be lotied all night with friends. hours for them to but it took fact that small parts of the cated in the central plaza of Police were called get him off the site. the mountain. house in the Ciudad to the “We are all so relieved,” Jardin neighbourhood Clifton’s friend and at around afterof Cordoba fellow walker MARBELLA’S Alan, who was the neighbours called concerned AN alarming 23% Festival, which Starlite fees are related to the authorto see him, told the last person of Andalucian pensioners ities. poverty, a new study featured Kool this year use of the venue, the the He added: “Clifton Olive Press. are at risk of Officers tried to Na& The gueles It makes the region has found. calm the boy Gang, John Legend auditorium. grateful for all the is extremely while they waited support given and Organisers In a country with second only to Extremadura with Jessie J, has yet for firefrom the local population had agreed huge divides, the fighters to arrive to pay to pay 6.5% in danger, while Basque Region only28%. and rescue its fee. the walking community and up before June him from the balcony. neighbouring Navarra has 1, The data collected in the when region.” Despite has activities 6.5%. by the AIS Group the festival endThe boy’s mother started. Cordoba are the found that those “We do not understand returned The retired former ing in mid September, from partying at in of 27%, followed worst affected, with a risk of poverty E-learning at GreenwichHead of this delay and we organisers of the morning and was7am in the rate demand UniverHuelva, Almeria by Malaga, Cadiz and Jaen with sity walked the route still owe the townevent that the government by neighbours that informed for 15 years. The national dataand Sevilla, meanwhile, rated at 23%. hall team act and police had 22%. for the over 65s was €125,000. taken her son. demand the tire country. 15.5% across the payment of these Socialist councillor He is currently enfunds, being looked after by family er Porcuna claimsJavi- which are important for the Marbella,” while his mother members he said. appearance at court.awaits an
Tragic end
November 6th - November 19th 2019
Catch November 20th - December 3rd 2019 them! NEWS IN BRIEF Scummy mummy
AN expat mother in Benalmadena has been jailed for six years after making sex videos with her young daughters,
LUXURY CAR GANG SNARED
GUNS and thousands of euros have been seized as police rounded up an expat gang that stole luxury cars on the Costa del Sol. In total, seven expats from Germany, Italy, Romania and Algeria were arrested in the raids. The gang, between 21 and 61 years old, carried weapons and €7005 in cash. They also used a series of specialised electronic devices, to start cars and open locks. Police made the arrests after a four month investigation, which began in Velez-Malaga, and traced the cars to drug dealers in the Campo de Gibraltar and in Eastern Europe.
inflatable boats (RIBs) are banned from the Andalucian coast in order to prevent drug trafficking. Authorities have seized the boat and are holding it in a warehouse for safekeeping. People smugglers charge up Beggaring to €6,000 to transport migrants tobelief Spain in these vessels. aged just 8 and 14.
Weeded out
POLICE dismantled a marijuana plantation in an abandoned house in Marbella with 303 plants and the appropriate electrical installation found.
AN expat has been arrested for forcing his daughter to beg on the Costa del Sol. The 38-year-old Romanian has been charged with exploitation of an underage person, after the arrest in Torremolinos. It is the second time he has been arrested for sending his daughter, believed to be 11, out to solicit money from passers by and tourists.
Air conned Police called in to probe cowboy builder who vanished into thin air
her to stop spreading ‘malicious rumours’. The problems came after she paid half of the quote upfront in August. “He just failed to return to do the job,” she told the Olive Press. “He is a total nightmare”. Since leaving Spain in September, the 55-year-old
ROGUE: Trader has fled with thousands of owed money plumber has set up two new were ‘entirely false’ businesses in Hampshire, and that he was suing the Olive Press has discov- Brookes for libel. He added he no lonered. When we contacted him this ger owned Air Care week, he insisted the claims Gibraltar and insisted the company’s new boss had offered to complete her installation, which she A VIOLENT robber who smacked an had turned down. expat store owner over the head with a “She refused and motorbike helmet in Marbella has been then started slandering me everywhere arrested. The Spanish man and an accomplice when in fact it had stole €500 from the till during the rob- nothing to do with me once the company bery on November 3. Both men, donning black balaclavas, fled was sold,” he said. Despite his claims, on a motorbike at around 10:30pm. Police have also retrieved a helmet he still appears to be the director of the matching the one used in the attack. The man now faces a violent robbery La Linea-based business. charge.
Time trouble Smash and grab AT least two Brits could have been conned into coughing up €4,600 in a timeshare scam. A Policia Nacional investigation led to the arrest of a of Fuengirola resident who police believe could have scammed other Britons too. The 38-year-old Colombia national is accused of offering a number of properties for holidays which then never materialised. The payments were made to the account of the mother of the accused but the holiday-makers were left empty-handed. The Policia Nacional opened the investigation after the two Brits made a denuncia. The Colombian was arrested and charged with fraud after the investigation was carried out.
CRIME
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Expats and Spaniards unite to demand urgent action over alleged animal killers EXCLUSIVE By Jacque Talbot
DRUG DEAL DEA TH
British father and son had been back and forth in year before to Costa del Sol reveals family they vanished,
Butterfly help
CATCH THESE SICKOS
Home at last
A GRUESOME image of a decapitated bunny allegedly found in a popular Costa del Sol park has horrified expats and local campaigners. Doors closed The rabbit - which appears to be the same one seen in an image published in the Olive Press’ last issue - was apparently found with its head and GRUESOME: Decapitated bunny in popular park paws cut off. Shocking old-age problem It is one of three rabbits that Local resident Cruz Lopez group Benalmadena es Verde have been attacked in Paloma shared a number of the im- is now demanding urgent acPark, in Benalmadena, along ages online saying she had tion despite admitting it was with a number of birds, in- found the injured or dead not clear how they had died. cluding chickens, doves and animals while cleaning up the “It’s so horrific,” she told the park. budgies. Olive Press. “In one week we The leader of local green found two seriously injured rabbits and one beheaded. “It is awful and we are demanding the council take immediate action. “We certainly didn’t need a POLICE have thwarted a gang house of terror for Halloween of masked youths who intended to riot and overturn cars on this year - a walk in our local The alarm was raised after an image Halloween. park is horrific enough,” of two youths surrounded by weapons with the text: ‘What Expats were quick to branded een?’ was shared on social media are you doing on Hallowthe unknown perpetrators as Luckily police spotted the post andaround Malaga city. ‘pure evil’. flooded the area of Teatinos, where over 100 youths gathered “This is disgusting beto run rampage. Dressed in black and wearing balaclavas haviour,” commented one to conceal their identities, they were stopped after Facebook user. During the police operation, one turning over just one car. It comes after eyewitnesses child was arrested for possession of a pellet gun while six more told the Olive Press a fortwere arrested for possessing laser guns and razors. night ago (inset above) how A further 25 balaclavas were seized they had reported seeing a by police. teenager abusing animals in the park.
Halloween thugs
Reader Phil Boyd, Sunny a tourist from Ireland, fright revealed: “I watched this teenager and his two friends kicking the chickens and ducks. “He also tried to wring
this poor little Can you rabbit’s Mum’s dig it?neck. I grabbed the word it from him and chased him and his accomplices off. I’m sorry to say I think it’s a regular occurrence.
COUG “Clearly H UP he came back and
finished the job.” The full extent of the butchery was revealed when Benalmadena es Verde spent a day cleaning up the park at the weekend. The group has now called in police and demanded action from the town hall. “We need proper surveillance, and parents to better educate their children to love animals,” its statement read. When professional profiling of criminals began in the US in the 1970s, one of the FBI’s most consistent findings was that childhood animal cruelty was a common behaviour among later serial murderers and rapists. Many notorious serial killers – including Jeffrey Dahmer – began by torturing and killing animals when they were children.
Rabbit killing - it’s not a new problem Have you seen any animals being attacked? Contact newsdesk@ theolivepress.es
AN animal cruelty problem has existed for ‘a long time’ in Benalmadena, it has been claimed. The president of campaign group Benalmadena Verde told the Olive Press that the authorities have just completely failed to tackle it. “This problem has been going on for a long time,” insisted Oscar Gil. “It’s serious because there is no security in the park and no adequate veterinary control.” His claims were backed up by a groundsman at Paloma Park, where the head of a rabbit was ripped off earlier this month. “The kids only come out on Friday, usually at night when no one can see them. They pick up, kick and punch the animals,” said the worker, who gave his name as Luis. “The authorities haven’t done anything to stop it despite our requests,” he added. It comes after a British tourist contacted the Olive Press with evidence showing a local teen apparently about to kill one of the rabbits. A clean up of dead animals in the area has become so bad a clean-up day was organised to get rid of the mess. Holidaymaker Harriet Pattinson revealed this week: “I saw teenagers attempting to catch the animals. It was very distressing.” (Holiday Horror, Page 10). The town hall has failed to reply to requests for answers from the Olive Press and Benalmadena Verde.
NEWS
www.theolivepress.es
November 20th - December 3rd 2019
3
POP versus POPulism
Let die and live
FORMER Bond girl Jane Seymour might have spent her time dodging death as Solitaire in 1973 hit Live and Let Die. But the closest she has ever come to death is in Spain, she has revealed. The 68-year-old star told the Times how she somehow ‘came back from the brink’ after a routine jab she had on the mainland gave her an anaphylactic shock. “I basically died and had to be resuscitated,” she revealed. She said the near-death experience means today she lives life to the ‘fullest.’ Seymour has recently spoken out against ageism, saying that ‘not every designer will dress someone my age.’
FAR right party Vox has hit back at Spain’s biggest pop star Rosalia after she announced ‘f*** Vox’ in a tweet. The 26-year-old star made the outburst after the party took a historic 52 seats in parliament. But Vox hit back with a photo of Rosalia on a private plane, insisting: “Only millionaires like you who have private planes can permit themselves the luxury of not having a homeland.” The party has campaigned on a platform of anti-immigration and pledged to repeal gender violence laws. The Catalan singer had the last laugh though when she took home three trophies at the Latin Grammy Awards. The 26-year-old Flamenco pop star picked up the best album gong and best contemporary pop vocal album award for El mal querer, as well as best urban song for Con Height. She is the first female winner of the album prize since 2006, when Shakira won.
Brexit brings me home HE is Malaga’s most famous son. As Antonio And now Antonio Banderas may be Banderas celebrates coming home for good… all thanks to Brexit. the launch of a The famous actor - who has just new theatre in his opened a new theatre in Malaga he is ‘worried’ about conbirth city, he may revealed tinuing to live in the UK, where he be seeking to move has been based for four years. Legend of Zorro star insists that home from the UK The Brexit may ‘force’ him to move back
Goyasmacked
KING Felipe and Queen Letizia didn’t seem to know what to make of a self-portrait by Spanish artist Goya during their historic visit to Cuba. It came as the royal couple visited a Francisco de Goya exhibition in Havana during a four day trip to the former colony, the first by Spanish royalty in 500 years. The pair seemed bemused by the pallid self-portrait completed in 1815. Cuba is Spain’s third-biggest trading partner after China and Venezuela. See Greatest Goya, page 14
to his home city of Malaga, where his new Teatro del Soho CaixaBank has just opened. He revealed that the continuing ‘uncertainty’ about Britain’s departure from the EU made him pine more for Spain. Banderas currently lives in the Surrey town of Cobham, with banker girlfriend Nicole Kimpel, but said he is ‘worried’ about the ‘uncertainty’
A HOST of big names from Spanish cinema and beyond attended the debut of musical A Chorus Line, in Malaga. Academy awardwinning director Pedro Almodovar (left) led the guests for the musical, which will go on tour to Madrid, Barcelona and the United States next year. Former Real Madrid defender Miguel Torres and Malaga-born bullfighter Javier Conde (left) also made appearances at the star-studded event.
caused by Brexit. “There is the possibility of moving back to Malaga,” he said. “Malaga is just the size of city I love and I’m coming here more and more.” The 59-year-old inaugurated his new Malaga theatre with a performance of A Chorus Line, attended by Spanish film legends including Pedro Almodovar at the weekend. Banderas won Best Actor at this year’s Cannes Film Festival for his performance in Almodovar’s Pain and Glory, in which he plays a ruined film director reflecting MISS Gibraltar was given a final gift to help her on her way to on his life choices. the Miss World beauty pageant. The Hollywood star, born Celine Bolanos was crowned Miss Gib last summer and she in Malaga in 1960, also rewill now take part in the Miss World event in London. vealed that his Swiss-GerBolanos will be hoping to emulate fellow Gibraltarian Kaiane man girlfriend Nicole has Aldorino who became the first Gibraltarian to clinch the Miss begun learning Spanish in World title in 2009. Although beauty pageants are considpreparation for a possible ered old-fashioned and sexist, the final night on December return to his home country. 14 is likely to get a large TV following… particularly in Gib!
WILL SHE DO THE DOUBLE?
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You can choose AN Andalucian town has given a whole new meaning to the phrase ‘public purse’. Residents of Rincon de la Victoria are being entrusted with almost €900,000 of council cash. Under the so-called ‘Transforma Rincon 2019’ campaign they can decide how it is spent. A total of 300 proposals so far submitted will now be whittled down to just seven. They include a ‘children’s parks plan’ (costing €300,000), a new footpath network (€40,000) and a ‘green’ rural reforestation project (€15,000). A children’s history workshop (€2,500), and a social project for the young and old (€2,800) are among other ideas. From front page
Cancers caged
ernments of Felipe Gonzalez and Jose Luis Zapatero. The pair had overseen the set up of the €855 million slush fund, intended for retired and unemployed workers and struggling companies. Under Chaves’s presidency between 2001 and 2008 more than €576 million was diverted into the fund. It is now nine years since judge Mercedes Alaya first began investigating the more than 200 companies and dozens of politicians. A total of 507 people were investigated across an amazing 146 separate probes. The scandal is named after the so-called ‘expediente de regulacion de empleo’, or ERE, which means a collective dismissal procedure for companies which need to downsize. Hundreds of illegal ERE payments were made to allegedly struggling firms to make severance payments to laid-off workers, many who
didn’t exist, the probe discovered. Millions were also handed out to companies and friends via grants which prosecutors described as ‘totally opaque’. The Olive Press first revealed about the ERE scandal in 2015 when a total of €1.3 billion was believed to have been embezzled by corrupt officials over a 12-year period. In a front page report in May, that year, we revealed how 16 politicians at the employment ministry were behind the scheme. President Chaves was warned about the fund as long ago as 2004 by a union complaining about bogus redundancy payments to miners in Huelva who did not exist. In a letter published in national newspaper El Mundo, the group complained that these people had ‘not been near the mine, neither inside or outside’.
NEWS
After signing a deal with Podemos, Sanchez now desperately needs to woo Catalan separatists
November 20th - December 3rd 2019
Charm offensive
SPAIN’s caretaker prime minister Pedro Sanchez is in a race against time to persuade Catalan separatists to approve his coalition government. While the PSOE finished as the biggest party following this month’s general election, it once again failed to win enough seats to rule alone.
A coalition deal quickly signed with left-wing leader of Podemos Pablo Iglesias has helped, but the proposed minority government still needs more support to lead the country. Sanchez has to persuade the Catalan Republic Left (ERC) to abstain during the vote, in order to form a government. The pro-independence par-
UK’S Head honcho in town BRITAIN’S new ambassador to Spain is set to visit the Costa del Sol today (Wednesday). Hugh Elliot will meet an estimated 100-plus expats in Manilva to discuss the issue of Brexit. Elliott, who succeeded Simon Manley as the UK’s top mandarin this summer, will be the key speaker for the town’s fifth seminar on the UK’s planned departure from the EU. Other speakers include British Consul Charmaine Arbouin, local politician Dean Tyler Shelton and Derek Langley, from the Chamber of Commerce, while a trio of local mayors will also be present.
ty is currently intending to reject the PSOE-Podemos coalition however, claiming Sanchez is anti Catalan independence. The PSOE leader will have his work cut out, having toughened his stance over Catalunya prior to the election, culminating in him saying he supported criminal sentences for holding illegal referendums. If he fails to pass his coalition, Spain may be forced to hold its third election this year, in which far-right Vox could ever improve on the 52 seats it gained two weeks ago. Podemos leader Iglesias blamed the PP and centre-right Ciudadanos party for the rise of the far-right party this week. He claimed that Vox did so well ‘because of the way in which the Spanish right approached the Catalan crisis.’ Vox came second in Andalucia and, incredibly, won in various towns, including Benahavis, Estepona and Manilva, as well as in Murcia province.
5
Lightening the load MIJAS’ famous donkeys are at last set to get a breather. The overworked mules will no longer have to carry overweight punters from next year. Under a new council scheme no-one over 80kg will be allowed to ride a donkey. It comes, oddly, after PP party plans to bring in the weight limit this summer were overruled and described as ‘excessive.’ The donkeys are now set to also get improved veterinary checkups and better hygiene standards, as well as a new purpose-built stables.
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A campaigning, community newspaper, the Olive Press represents the huge expatriate community in Spain with an estimated readership, including the websites, of more than one million people a month.
FEATURE
November 20th - December 3rd 2019
IT’S WARMING UP... ...and SHE’LL be there...
OPINION The reptiles have finally been caged It’s thanks to the unshakable determination of one woman that this week 19 Andalucian politicians and business leaders were sentenced to a total of 86 years in prison for swindling the public out of millions of euros. The iron lady of the Spanish justice system, judge Mercedes Alaya, has devoted almost a decade of her life to uncovering the gross corruption of the former PSOE leaders. And it is she who should be remembered as the unsung heroine of the sorry ERE saga. The €1billion-plus slush fund that paid for ex-employment minister Javier Guerro’s cocaine-fuelled afternoons in brothels has been dubbed the ‘reptile fund’.
Fag
And this 63-year-old alleged socialist can only be described as reptilian, seemingly unable to arrive or leave a single court hearing without a fag hanging from his mouth or gripped between his fingertips. Hopefully his eight year jail sentence will give him ample time to reflect on why splurging money meant for laid off workers and the unemployed is a bad look for a politician meant to be on the people’s side. It is a further kick in the teeth to those who voted these politicians into power that ex-Junta president Chaves - who incredibly avoided jail - turned a blind eye when miners in Huelva tried to warn politicians of the bogus payments in a letter published in El Mundo. Let’s hope the sentences today serve as a reminder to our elected representatives that they may help make the law, but they’re not above it. Publisher / Editor
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Heather Galloway on how hosting the climate change summit COP25 could be a game-changer for Spain
M
ADRID will be front page news next month when 25,000 of the world’s environmental experts fly in for the UN’s COP25 climate change summit. And not only because teen activist Greta Thunberg will be among them (and she’s sailing in, not flying). Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez stepped up to the plate when social unrest forced Chile to pull out as host at the eleventh hour, giving Spain front row seats and a golden opportunity. Chilean president Sebastian Piñera will continue to preside over the proceedings, which will be staged at the IFEMA conference centre from December 2-13. But Spain’s Ecology Minister, Greenpeace spokesperson Teresa Ribera, a prestigious Tatiana Nuño is also positive. figure on the global scene, “Our country is a rough diawill also take a leading role. mond when it comes to renewAnd she has had to employ able energy,” she tells me. “And the same sense of urgency people here are aware; they required to reduce CO2 emiswant to act and participate. sions to prepare for the deluge “We have the potential to be up of experts and negotiators in there with the most progressive record time. countries. But we need a stable Among those guaranteed to government, one that puts enattract global attention during ergy transition at the centre of the summit is Swede Thunberg, its agenda.” 16, who has droves of followers There certainly should be an in Spain, where Fridays for Fuincentive, Spain being on the ture strikes have taken off. frontline when it comes to the She does however, have her deimpact of climate change in Eutractors, such as rope. the far-right Vox A 2016 report naysayers who published in have attacked the Spain is already Science preactivist, branding dicts a range experiencing her ‘a puppet’. of scenarios for Having already the south, dealarming embarked on her pending on the developments zero emissions rate at which journey, Greta are like flash floods emissions found herself checked... the stranded on the worst possibility wrong side of the is being a ravAtlantic until Australian couaged ecosystems of semi-desple Riley Whitelum and Elayna ert for much of Andalucia and Carausu came to the rescue Murcia and poor prospects for and offered her a passage on those living along the coast as their catamaran, back the way sea levels rise and temperashe came. tures increase by five degrees So will the summit act as a catby 2100. alyst to Spain’s fight against Spain is already experiencing climate change, perhaps turnalarming developments such ing the country into a European as an unprecedented increase leader on the issue? in flash floods, blamed by the Ribera has high hopes and Observatory of Sustainability
The end of the world as we know it?
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“The world may already have gone down the toilet in terms of emissions. That is what is moving Extinction Rebellion. That’s what I see on Greta’s face. Somehow she symbolises the cock-up of our generation. What we need to do is to sell emerging economies the truth; that sustainable economies are the most economically viable, bringing quality jobs, reduced energy insecurity and reduced foreign control.
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WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW There will be climate-change demos almost every day, with the biggest march (see left) going from Atocha to Nuevos Mi nisterios on December 6, organised by various groups including Fridays for Future COP25 will cost €90 million to host and is predicted to bring a cash injection of €200 million
on climate change, economic growth and unbridled urban development which increases impermeable surface areas. Murcia’s Mar Menor is also acting as a wake up call. Fish are being starved of oxygen and Europe’s largest salt-water lagoon is turning into a graveyard, due in large part to intensive farming and flooding. It didn’t happen overnight of course. As former renewables journalist, Anthony Luke, points out, “Everyone was surprised when tonnes of fish were washed up on the shores of the Mar Menor this autumn following years of pollution from agricultural pesticides. “The warning signs,” he said, ”have been there for years but nobody took the blindest bit of notice. The Mar Menor has now become synonymous with environmental disaster. But it could occur on a far larger scale anywhere in the world if the signs are not heeded.” Ignoring the signs is a major issue. Less than 2% of Spaniards listed climate change among their top three political concerns in a survey carried out by the Centre for Sociological research (CIS) in the run-up to the November 10 general election. Coupled with the gains made by the extreme right wing party Vox, which remains sceptical about climate change, this is somewhat at odds with Ribera and Nuño’s optimism. However, when the current PP-led Madrid council tried to dismantle the low-emissions scheme ‘Madrid Central’, it was stopped in its tracks after thousands came out in protest, prompting a court ruling. Nuño is also encouraged by the fact that climate activists have called for demonstrations against Black Friday at the end of this month and believes people power will be a significant factor during COP25. “The demonstrations will put pressure on Madrid not only to maintain Madrid Central but to expand it and get the emissions within the city down to
There will be an alternative summit called the Social Climate Summit held at the Complutense University from December 7-13 The Paseo de la Castellana will become the Green Castellana – the focus of cultural and citizen activity In IFEMA, COP25 will occupy seven pavilions. The Blue Zone will host the multilateral UN negotiations The Green Zone will raise environmental awareness among the public with open dialogue and workshops Some 400 volunteers will be working at the event Madrid will host a Youth Conference from November 29 to December 1 and the young people are set to play a significant role in the conference zero,” she says, adding that it will force the government to be more ambitious with its targets for 2030. She hopes to see it aim to reduce emissions by 55% as opposed to 20% with respect to 1990. Meanwhile Sergio de Otto, of the Renewables Foundation in Madrid, believes Spain does not have the weight to become a leader in Europe in the fight against climate change. However he does see Spain’s hosting of COP25 as a positive means of raising awareness. “We can feel optimistic that we have someone like Teresa at the head of the Ecological Transition Ministry,” he tells me.“But there is a lot of resistance. The government is going in the right direction but there are obstacles slowing things down when the only thing we need right now is to go fast.” Whether or not we can pick up the pace depends on the consumer. “If we as individuals act,” he says, “then we can demand more urgent action from the authorities, pushing them to legislate.” The ball is in our court, it seems.
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FEATURE
The Berlin Wall fell 30 years ago this month, but populism and far-right groups like Vox are building another one that is dividing our response to the climate crisis, writes Jon Clarke
November 20th - December 3rd 2019
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AS the Olive Press continues to grow around Spain - having just opened its FIFTH paper in Murcia and the Costa Blanca south this month - so does our community footprint. Thanks to our huge - and genuine - social media following we have an enviable head start. Yes, our REAL 22,100 Facebook followers and our TRUE 7,250 Twitter fans means that we are already known in the new region. While we get hundreds of thousands of engagements each fortnight, it is our website that takes the biscuit. For www.theolivepress.es leads the way in Spain in English by a country mile. Indeed, it is bigger than any rival by nearly FOUR TIMES. Yes, you read that. Thanks to our dozens of stories every day about Spain - not celebrity tittle tattle in the UK, or accidents in France - we are the ONLY English website in the Top 1000 in Spain. This is definitive and comes from an official ranking by Amazon’s Alexa.com, and backed up by legitimate Google analytics.
T
ANTI-IMMIGRANT: HERE was never any quesFar right partion where we would aim for. ties are making It was my university’s hitch inroads around hike for charity and it beEurope today, whigan exactly 30 years ago, during the le (below) the wall week the Berlin Wall started to fall. opens in 1989 A precursor to my future career as a journalist, there was only one place in the world that I wanted to be. Just 20 years of age and half way through a degree in Geography at Manchester University, the opportunity to see this momentous world event close up had incredible allure. And despite a later 15-year career covering numerous big stories – including Chernobyl, Maddie McCann and the death of Princess Diana – it presidents, Bill Clinton and George still leaves a bigger imprint on my Bush heard what the defeated formind. mer rival had to say, but went ahead So much still sticks in the memory, with what they planned anyway. from the edgy faces of young East Millions of eastern Europeans also German border guards standing took the promises of a bright new nervously on top of the wall, undawn at face value, only to pay a sure what to do, to the families of heavy price in unemployment, ecoWest Germans, standing by Checknomic collapse, and social turmoil. point Charlie handing over wads of And despite Germany investing banknotes to total strangers as they some two trillion euros, unemployarrived through the wall in their batment and social problems are still tered Trabant cars. higher in the former communist Deeply interested in the rift bepart. tween communism and fascism It took Hungary and Poland, the from studying the Spanish Civil War richest Iron Curtain countries, a full during my history A-level, it was indecade to recover economically from credible to think that this formidawhere they were when the ble barrier to world wall came down. peace, which saw 239 There has also been a people shot dead tryDresden in sharp rise in racism in ing to cross it, was these former Eastern the east of finally coming down. Bloc countries, a problem The unbreakable which has spread around Germany has spirit of people who dared to dream came declared a ‘Nazi’ Europe. Dresden in the east of to a head at Berlin’s Germany has just deemergency Brandenburg Gate on clared a ‘Nazi’ emergenNovember 11, 1989. cy, saying it has a severe That night, at around problem with the far 11pm, the border guards finally right. The city has long been viewed started letting its citizens leave East as a bastion of the far-right and Germany. In the following days, is the birthplace of the anti-Islam cracks started appearing in the Pegida movement. wall, as the exodus swelled. By the Meanwhile, the far-right Alternative weekend after it became a deluge as fur Deutschland is now Germany’s thousands made their dash for freeofficial opposition, having won 94 dom, aided by thousands of West seats in the 2017 elections, while Germans chiselling away at the hatAngela Merkel’s party shed 65 seats. ed barrier with hammers, pickaxes, In this month’s Spanish elections, shovels and even hydraulic drills. the far right Vox party which calls Nobody seemed to be working. for the ‘reconquest of Spain’ I joined them, arriving back in the has made huge gains everywhere, UK five days later with a suitcase full including the expat hotspots of the of souvenir chunks. It was an amazCosta del Sol and Murcia, to become ing time to be in Berlin. the third force in parliament. As former British prime minister Vox took 52 seats in Congress, a maGordon Brown later told up to a million Germans: “Because of your courage two Berlins are one. Two Germanys are one, and now two Europes are one.” Yet, once again all is not well in Europe. While the reunification of Germany eventually ushered in a new, larger and more powerful Europe, it had a double-edged meaning. Millions regained their basic freedoms but various promises made to Mikael Gorbachev at the time were never kept. In particular, the Russian leader was promised that NATO would not expand into the bases left by departing Russian troops in East Germany. US LANDMARK: Jon notes his 1989 trip
Olive Press7 online
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jor increase on the 24 seats it previously held. Many believed Spain was immune to the far right because of memories of life under Franco. But Vox’s anti-immigration stance aligns it with many right wing parties across Europe, and it has sought to change legislation aimed at protecting women from gender violence, claiming it discriminates against men. These are worrying times. Over my nearly 20 years in Spain I have seen a horrifying disregard for European laws, protecting both human rights and the environment. The tsunami of cement that has seen its coastlines almost completely destroyed over the last two decades has made the country a watchword for excess, while wide scale corruption has allowed the real estate sector to steamroller its way over thousands of protected green spaces. Thousands of foreigners have seen their homes in danger of being knocked down, despite acquiring the correct licences. Many more lost out in off-plan schemes, only now finally being rectified by law. It’s 10 years ago since the Auken Report into environment and human rights abuse was issued by the EU demanding action. But despite the millions in taxpayers’ money spent compiling, interviewing and investigating the excesses, little has changed. That is where the European Union, as a higher authority, should have stepped in. And indeed it would have done, if a crucial vote to withhold €185 million of benefits from Spain hadn’t been shelved at the final hour. There is much speculation about why this was allowed to happen, some claiming it was the Spanish government threatening to block further EU legislation. Either way, if such blatant disregard for European laws remains unpunished, what then is the point of the EU? Certainly, it is vital that issues like this are addressed, particularly with the spectre of climate change likely to hit Spain a lot harder than northern Europe. Madrid is hosting the UN Climate summit next month when world leaders and climate change activists, Greta Thunberg included, will discuss how to stick to the 2016 Paris Climate Agreement promise of keeping global warming below 2 degrees. But actions speak louder than words. Having seen the fall of the Berlin wall it is vital that we Europeans, whether from the East or West, harness that same spirit of unity to solve the environmental crisis. It is going to be painful financially and difficult socially. But if we don’t work together on this one, it will create a wall dividing not only Europeans but the whole of mankind.
THE PAPER WITH THE REAL NUMBERS And what can you learn from this. Well firstly we are ranked globally at 12,854th position, putting us above the Liverpool Echo and Scotland’s prestigious Daily Record. Thanks to our high traffic figures - between 30,000 and 50,000 visits a day - we are at 593rd position in Britain and 870th in Spain. Meanwhile we have zoomed up to 638th position in Ireland and are 79th in Gibraltar.
OUR RIVALS Other local English newspapers Sur in English, Euro Weekly News and the Costa Blanca News fail to get into the top 2,000 in the UK, Spain or Ireland. The Mallorca Daily Bulletin ranks at 853,331, while the Costa Blanca News ranks at 2.93m, Costa-news at 1.84m, Alicantetoday at 11.04m and Murcia Today at 832,706.
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The top five most read stories on www.theolivepress.es in the past two weeks are:
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- Grumpy Bake Off star Paul Hollywood threatens to fill in Olive Press cakehole for asking a question (42,369) - Storm Cecilia from the Atlantic to blast southern Spain this week as Costa del Sol, Murcia and Costa Blanca on alert for strong winds ahead of FIVE DAYS OF RAIN (30,999)
3 4 5
- ‘Fake bus driver’ who made €3.2 million from tourists and kids on Costa del Sol and across Spain arrested and has his 19 buses seized (24,721)
- Shocked beach-goers watch as drug boat carrying migrants runs ashore on Spain’s Costa del Sol (21,605) - REVEALED: This is the restaurant in British tourist hotspot in Spain accused of treating staff ‘like slaves’ with €2.80 per hour salaries (20,619)
8 Clean beds AN environmental company has teamed up with a sea cleaning organisation to clear up the waters of the Costa del Sol. Equilibrio Marino and Alnasar joined forces and will provide year-round cleaning to control all the waste dumped in the sea as well as seeking out and reporting any possible environmental threats. Fernando Alarcon, head of Equilibrio Marino, said: “Plastics, wet wipes, cigarette butts, sewage from waste plants, and even illegal fishing, are all threats to the marine ecosystem as they break down the waters of the Costa del Sol.” Among the team tackling the environmental issue are professional sailors, divers, and scientists. Already the groups have found a huge discarded fishing net close to the beach, which trapped some fish on the seabed.
GREEN
November 20th - December 3rd 2019
Hold your hoses
Call for hospipe ban after shockingly low water levels revealed
By Robert Firth
A BRITISH photographer has called for a hosepipe ban on the Costa del Sol, after shocking photos she took show the plummeting water levels at a reservoir. Michele Brecknell says she has ‘never’ seen the Lake Istan reservoir (right) so low in the 23 years she has lived here. She now wants the town hall to impose a hosepipe ban and encourage people to conserve water. “We should not be washing our cars. People need to be
made aware,” she told the Olive Press. Brecknell took three photos of the lake over an 11-month period.
Green fingered
PLOT: Set to be a kid’s learning environment
WORK is underway to build an Andalucian town’s first urban garden for school children. The plot in Estepona will be used to teach children about different types of fruit trees and plants. A variety of avocado, mango, lemon and orange trees will be included in the garden, alongside plants such as potatoes, peppers, watermelon, zucchini and onions. Estepona Council has set aside €58,200 for the project, which will be built over a one and a half month period on a 1,000-square-metre plot next to El Carmen public school. The urban garden will consist of a three level orchard, wooden planters and a tool shed containing gardening equipment. A council spokesperson said it was ‘fundamental’ that children have contact with nature.
The first photo taken in January shows the lake looking full. By late September when the second photo was taken the water level has reduced so much that the top storey of a derelict house has emerged from the lake’s surface. In the final photo taken less than two months later the entire two-storey house surfaced. “It has happened in about two and a half months– that’s the scariest thing,” Brecknell said. The 59-year-old estate agent said that officials at Istan town hall told her there wasn’t a problem because the lake was 30% full. “I think it’s a ludicrous attitude to have,” she said. “They say we are waiting for it to rain. We need a hell of a lot of rain to fill that.”
GREEN
10
November 20th - December 3rd 2019 Check out our issues online at www.theolivepress.es
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Triple trouble
Better help Greta! SEE Page 4
A BELEAGUERED animal shelter has slammed a court order which euthanasia chemicals sometimes with German Pietsch ‘falsifying contained a slew of allegations as documents’. ‘unjust’. Bizarrely, she and another forIt comes after a judge ormer president allegedly dered committal hearsacrificed black pets ings against six forfirst. mer members of MarThe Olive Press was bella’s Triple A team the first paper to refor a ‘massive and veal in April 2016 unjustified’ sacrifice how a huge police of animals for years. operation saw the arMarbella’s court is rests of two expats probing whether and a vet at the the charity alsanctuary. lowed the slow An incredible 15 and agonising Guardia Civil offideaths of numercers were involved ous animals over in the dramatic at least a sixraid seizing comyear period from puters, documents 2011. and other eviIt claimed that dence. former President Bettina Pietsch allowed the anFraud imals, most Pietsch, Dutch Secof which were retary Jan Weima healthy, to be and a senior vet sacrificed with were arrested for incorrect levels animal cruelty and of anaesthetic. dog trafficking, A disproportionalong with 17 other STRANDED: Environmental ate number were campaigner Thunberg needs staff members. a lift to Madrid by boat and killed, most train judge has ‘without veter- ARRESTS: How the Olive The now dismissed the inary control’ Press reported the police charges against 14 and without the raids in 2016 of them, but the final right knowledge on the doses six face charges of SHE’S galvanized children across needed to prevent pain. animal abuse, EXCLUSIVE the world with her impassioned The investigation found that the grateful.” By Charlie Smith documentaspeeches on climate change. shelter acquired large amounts The Olive Press has stepped in of ry falsificaKids in 4,000 cities staged mass summit was switched to offer her a lift in an tion, miswalkouts to protest against minute from South at the last car from any of the ports electric America to she can appropriadults and politicians polluting Spain. make it to on the Iberian Penination of the planet. sula, that could include Cadiz, Her plans to head to funds, soBut now celebrity activist Greta had to be shelved, Chile have Lisbon or A Coruna. cial secuwith the Thunberg is facing her biggest showdown now moved rity fraud to Ma- The summit that aims to implechallenge yet as she bids to cross drid, after a series and more. of massive ment the 2015 Paris agreement, the Atlantic for a critical climate protests scared off organisers will In particular, in 2-13,take place from December summit, just announced for Santiago. many leaving Greta with a little animals Spain. were rehomed off But after Thunberg made her over three weeks to make it to The 16-year-old Swede, who was way to New York City the books. Madrid. In a Facebook nominated for the Nobel Peace in August, en route by boat She already has an offer to South from statement, Prize, is currently stuck in Texas, America, she found herself the Spain’s Minister for the charity as she aims to make it to the Ma- 5,700km from the Spanishstuck ment, Teresa Ribera, Environclaimed who said: capthe allegations are drid conference over land or sea. ital. “We would love to help you to part of a ‘malicious Famed for her low carbon foot- “It turns out I’ve traveled half- cross the Atlantic. campaign’ orchesprint, she is looking for help way around the world, “It would be great to have you trated ‘years befrom expats across America and way,” the teen wrotethe wrong here in Madrid.” fore’, and that it is Europe as she refuses to fly or Twitter account, which on her committed to provhas three drive, instead preferring greener million followers. ing the accused are Crisis transport like trains and boats. “Now I need to find a way to innocent. After she
Teen activist needs YOUR help to make it across the Atlantic to Spain for key climate summit
You total doughnut!
Find out what’s eating Paul Hollywood on Page 3
Opinion page 6
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But her green footprint has left her in trouble after the location for the UN COP25 climate
had made it all the way to LA, Thunberg is now heading back towards America’s east coast, having made stops in South Dakota and British Columbia. Thunberg will be one of 25,000 people to attend Spain’s first ever climate summit, which will cost around €90 million to hold. It comes as Spain’s government may be locked in political crisis again, as the latest polls suggest that no party will secure an overall majority in the November 10 general election.
cross the Atlantic,” she wrote, this week. “If anyone could help me find transport I would be so
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UNSAVOURY
Right turn
An investigation uncovers Mallorca restaurant serving up ‘contemporary slavery’, threats and worse EXCLUSIVE By Jacque Talbot
A DANGEROUS lurch to the right could see Spain’s anti-immigrant Vox party becoming the kingmakers in this weekend’s general election. of The massive surge - off the back the recent Catalan crisis and a fear of Islam - could see the party seizing 15% of the seats in Parliament. The expected gains will seriously damage centre-right Ciudadanos, which could lose over half its seats, while the ruling PSOE and left wing Podemos are also expected to suffer. Vox, which has pledged to ‘defend’ Spain from immigrants, is predicted to finish third in the country’s fourth general election in as many years. led The latest polling suggests Vox, by Santiago Abascal, will increase its 24 seats in Spain’s 350-seat parliament to 46.
reAN Olive Press investigation can veal the identity of a now-notorious over restaurant owner, who presided alleged ‘slave-like’ conditions. After local media reported this week that Failed about a restaurant in Escorca employed staff on just €2.80 an hour Meanwhile Albert Rivera’s Ciuto Sa Calobra beach for up to 14-hour shifts, we can reveal dadanos will be reduced from 57 to work 14-hour days metres from seven ‘slaves’ were forced to the restaurant is Es Port, in Sa Calo14. In the 40dB poll Vox is setthe Pe- IDYLLIC: Yet bra, owned by local businessman gain 14% of the vote, alongside and his pending court date - we claims. facts are simple: seven people dro Vicenc. PP in second place with 21.2% and this spoke to other local restaurateurs The allegedly found to be workWhile he refused to comment 91 seats and the PSOE coming first who backed up the shocking wereunder ‘inhumane’ conditions. week - merely confirming his arrest ing with 27.3% and 121 votes. According to a police investiga- las said it was an embarrassment The PSOE’s predicted victory two less tion they received just €40-a-day for the resort and that Vicenc had would see the party with election, without proper breaks and under been known for his ‘modus ope- seats than in April’s last another headache for its a ‘climate of fear’. randi’ for some time. His downfall prompting as he tries to The restaurant ‘took advantage’ of came a few days after plainclothes leader Pedro Sanchez form a government. the seven ‘immigrants’, who felt cops had staked out the joint. Opinion page 6 forced to accept the slave-like con- Official court documents show ditions and work, usually six days that the staff were under constant a week. threat of dismissal and forced to lie One local restaurant owner, who about any accidents at work. They asked not to be named, told the were also refused holidays and ofto Olive Press: “I don’t recall seeing ten had to juggle multiple jobs as the a single Spaniard or Mallorquin cooks, cleaners and maintenance working there. All workers looked staff. Staff were forced to sign off like they came from Morocco. their criminally-low payslips or “There were always a lot of strange face the threat of being sacked. goings-on at that restaurant. It’s been very unsettling.” Court Another, who has known the ownwhich is in the er for years, said: “It’s a disgrace The restaurant, of scenic Sa Caloand has been going on for years, heart of the port bra, is administered under the along with various other things. Colobra SL. “I am so pleased it is finally being company nametold the Olive Press Owner Vicenc dealt with.” can’t say anything He revealed how over a dozen last night: “I have I what hear can 15:36 the restaurant now. People 16/06/2017 1 on police swooped Untitled-1.pdf to say when I’m in court.” He about three weeks ago. was arrested along Mayor of Escorca Antoni Solivelwith two other bosses, who have Amanda Butler also been charged wonders who on with crimes against workers’ rights earth to vote for in C Police rumbled the the forthcoming UK operation following M a tip off in Septemelections UK BASED Y ber. See page 14
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Right turn A DANGEROUS lurch to the right could see Spain’s anti-immigrant Vox party becoming the kingmakers in this weekend’s general election.
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VANISHED!
Duty of care claims after missing police station at 3am in clearly British great-grandfather was allowed to leave disoriented state
The massive surge - off the back of the recent Catalan crisis and a fear EXCLUSIVE By Joshua Parfitt of Islam - could see the party seizing 15% of the seats in Parliament. The expected gains will seriously POLICE on the Costa Blanca damage centre-right Ciudadanos, have been slammed after they which could lose over half its seats, allowed a confused and disorienwhile the ruling PSOE and left wing tated British great-grandfather Podemos are also expected to sufto walk out of a police station fer. into the dead of night alone. Vox, which has pledged to ‘defend’ The family of pensioner Philip Spain from immigrants, is predictPearce, 68, are demanding aned to finish third in the country’s swers from Benidorm police over fourth general election in as many why he was released on Septemyears. ber 10, at 3am. The latest polling suggests Vox, led They now fear for his life after he by Santiago Abascal, will increase has been missing for an alarming its 24 seats in Spain’s 350-seat partwo months. liament to 46.
And in a shocking email from the British Consulate, seen by the Olive Press this week, there are suggestions of a breach of duty of care. The official email reveals the pensioner had clearly told police DISAPPEARED: Philip Pearce enjoying a drink he ‘did not remember where he (above right) the last picture of the pensioner in(above), while Alicante Airport was staying’ nor where he was from in England. The consulate email also stated He was having a good holiday spent ‘four to five’ hours Philip was carrying neither his until he left his Playa Levante day scouring abandoned every buildpassport nor his wallet when hotel at 5.30pm on September 9 ings and traveller communities he was taken by a stranger to to buy cigarettes before he lost around the Costa Blanca. Benidorm’s Policia Nacional sta- his bearings and was taken to “I even sent my dog out with tion in the Old Town just after police. GoPro camera to search in everya Opinion page 6 midnight, as CCTV footage conbush and in every corner, but firms. Wallet we’ve found nothHowever, what is not clear is how Two months on, Lee told the Ol- ing,” McQueen said. and why he was allowed to leave ive Press a request for ‘a ground “I’ve got 130 taxi the station three hours later. search and sniffer dogs’ has gone drivers who start “The police are simply not an- unanswered, while the family are at 4am and finish swering our questions,” son Lee left searching at 2am, but none of Pearce, 41, told the Olive Press “We just need for answers. closure on wheth- the hotels and eslast night. er my dad is still alive or not,” tablishments have “It’s absolutely gut-wrenching Lee said. seen a sign of Philfor us as a family, not knowing “But apart from ip.” where he is and why he disap- sent out some claiming to have The family drones to look, has peared. the police don’t seem to be doing spent weeks put“I just want him home so badly. ting up posters and I anything at all.” miss him so much.” It comes as scores handing out Philip was known to be suffering idents have spent of British res- of his missing flyers father weeks searchfrom the early signs of demen- ing for signs around Benidorm tia, but was ‘happy and smiling’ ther-of-three. of the grandfa- with contact details. See pages 7 & 13 when he left for Alicante with Owner of Alicante Transfers, A spokeswoman for friend and travelling partner. a David McQueen, said he has the British Consulate told the Olive
Failed
Meanwhile Albert Rivera’s Ciudadanos will be reduced from 57 14. In the 40dB poll Vox is set to gain 14% of the vote, alongside to the PP in second place with 21.2% and 91 seats and the PSOE coming first with 27.3% and 121 votes. The PSOE’s predicted victory would see the party with two less seats than in April’s last election, prompting another headache for leader Pedro Sanchez as he tries its to form a government.
Spain goes to the polls
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Press they ‘do not comment on individual cases’ such as Philip’s. A Policia Nacional spokesman claimed ‘helicopters’ had been scrambled to search for Philip on various Benidorm hillsides. However, they failed to answer questions about the exact details of his release from the station or whether sniffer dogs and ground searches had been deployed or would be soon.
LEAVERS: Trio of Brits in Spain
Holiday horror After reading the article about animal cruelty in Paloma Park I just wanted to add that during my holiday to d chasing and edu Get teenagers also I saw cate dena in July Benalma
attempting to catch the rabbits and birds (Catch them!, 2). the EU, essentially, as a political 330, pgsees IssueMoore Rose locals as clearly put up pg 7). The to beIssue 325, need proud, Signs and (Leave and hipcameras dictators was so lly. This states, behave 28 sovereign be trusted arerespectfu cannot oppositeto. There is the reality park to go to the People see. become te to apprecia g to ly chose distressin voluntari which UK, the including g bedisturbin this watch not animals, and would nature UK the the that believes Dunne Steve d. associate passed be going can on informati this all hope I to to haviour. not I’m so. Not terms. fair better on WTO le responsib those and park the with involved those and chapter page by quoting make things weigh down your letters to do could they thing Another . punished into the that Steve looks I recommeisnd verse, butthe enclosures for them, like create rabbits safer forof any that he knows. That Trump industry specifics have. goats and the donkeys a trade deal with an EU-free UK should to getstill have a good quality of life, but it would tryingwould isThey Trump’s know: to to want all you youpeople tell them. trade deals access able being stop speakstoforthe Mahler Brent Finally, labels. US-first have coming I was on holiday in June and have been armed an EU wary citizens of UK area visiting been force number dena a Benalma have lifeofand all my However, these are ideas union. closer ever and a toddler. I was since park thean I am EU policy. notteenager s mistreatpeople and specific occasion s I saw floated On twobyseparate of pro- a years morning, 40-plus was late insidious at the first time The worried more animals. ing the h, chasing Telegrap Mail,were by theboys Spanish EEC/EU teenage three the paganda group ofagainst of some did What Sun. out The them chicks with young of course, and, that had the hensTimes Express, bushes. say when he was asked why he was so anMurdoch The us. writing forof: into you I go thankthe “Whento Harriet, lines Ed. Hi g along Somethin ti-EU? have weeks few past the over The park EU.” the in the to go I scenes when say: I what do they 10 No. pass We will ent! g.appointm been nothing ask for an to shockin he hadof on is thatshort implicati your information on to the relevant authorities and continue to investigate this matter.
Readers react to news that Spaniards are worse at speaking English than Romanians, Serbians and Greeks, according to a new study Oh the irony
Actually English people who have lived in Spain for years take the prize! Karen Young, Nerja
No-go in the Campo
Spaniards who work in the tourist industry are more likely to speak English. Not just for the benefit of the British, but also Germans, Dutch and others who usually use English as their second language. In the countryside it is a different story. Teresa Tracy Ramsey, Fuente-Tojar
On the defensive
Why don’t they do a study in the UK to see how well people do with any other language apart from English? I don’t see the point of the article. Jessica Marina Dos Santos, Malagan
Selective hearing
I disagree. Some Spaniards don’t like the English and although they can speak our language they choose not to....according to my Spanish friends. Angie Knell, Malaga
Best from the east
Russians are the best nation for speaking a second language. It’s something to do with their dialect that makes it easier for them to learn a second language. James Cottnam, Cardiff
Have you seen Philip? Get in touch at newsdesk@ theolivepress.es
You total doughnut! Find out what’s eating Paul Hollywood on Page 3
Has anything piqued your interest in this week’s Olive Press? Have your say on the matter by emailing letters@ theolivepress.es or message us on at www.facebook.com/OlivePressNewspaper or Twitter @olivepress
It is even worse that doctors are still prescribing it (New Nolotil warning, Issue 330, pg 5). We have lived here a year and my husband has been prescribed it three times by three different doctors. Luckily I had read an article about it before we moved here otherwise we might have taken it without knowing! Marie Troake, Malaga
Cafe conundrum The reason why you are charged extra for a cafe del tiempo is the fact that you have a cup and saucer and then a glass with ice, hence doubling the amount of washing up (Price for ice, Issue 330, pg 5). Ice costs money, staff time and running a dishwasher also costs money. An extra €0.10 is nothing Angie Smith, Benidoleig
Cracking column I am loving your light hearted and amusing narrative (Crutch control, Issue 330, pg 38). Count me in as a reader! Good luck for the future. Lynn Constantine, Malaga
Game of chess Nationalists are the foolish pawns of the wealthy, blindly working against their own self interest in support of the very people who oppress them (How populism is the new divide that’s endangering our response to the climate crisis today, Online, November 10). Brenda Sherman, San Francisco
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LA CULTURA
11
November 6th - November 19th 2019
Stony reception
Tragicomic award
AN ILLUSTRATOR has won a prestigious Spanish Comic Award for a graphic novel telling the story of the 2006 Valencia metro disaster, which killed 43 people. Cristina Duran’s partner Miguel Angel Giner - who cowrote the novel - took the call announcing her victory as the 49-year-old was undergoing surgery for breast cancer. It is the first time the gong has been awarded for a piece of journalism. El dia 3 recounts the events of the 2006 Valencia metro catastrophe and the ensuing battle of victims’ families for justice. The jury praised the novel for its ‘narrative in which emotion, graphic excellence and the use of powerful visual metaphors are balanced.’ The comic was published in February 2018 in Spanish and later in Valencian.
A DISPUTE has broken out between a local heritage group and a university over the age of an aqueduct. The Los Milagros aqueduct in Merida, Extremadura, was thought to be from the Roman era. However, two engineers from the Universidad Autonoma de Madrid say that tests carried out on a brick from the aqueduct show it is in fact Byzantine and
AN 81-year-old Catalan poet has been awarded Spain’s most prestigious literature prize. Joan Margarit won the annual Miguel de Cervantes award which has a prize pot of €125,000. But Margarit may be less than impressed, having previously said ‘́poetry is not literature; it’s another thing.’ The octogenarian poet and architect published his autobiography To have a house you have to win the war earlier this year. He has described the book as ‘the epilogue of my complete work.’ Announcing the prize winner, Minister of Culture
was built in the fourth century. But the ancient city’s archeological committee disagree. They have slammed the study as being ‘without archaeological rigour.’ The committee’s director, Felix Palma, said: “They have come to the theory without taking into account the rest of studies and knowledge about the aqueduct.” Merida’s mayor, Antonio Rodríguez Osuna, also dismissed the findings.
Ode to a poet A famous Spanish writer and poet has been awarded a distinguished lifetime achievement accolade
Jose Girao, described Margarit as ‘a great poet in Spanish and Catalan’ who was ‘worthy of the prize.’ The award’s jury said the Catalan poet was deserving of the accolade ‘for his poetic work of deep transcendence and lucid language, always innovative.’
“[His work] has enriched both the Spanish language and the Catalan language MULTILINGUAL: Joan Margarit and represents the plurality of the peninsu- Margarit wrote only in lar’s culture in one dimen- Spanish until 1981, when he sional universal mastery,” switched entirely to Catait said. lan. Since the 1990s he has written in both languages. Recently, he spoke publicly in support of Catalan autonomy. “It is the only lanHE played the parts of Sean Connery, Richard guage, or one of the few inBurton and Michael Caine, yet hardly anyone tellectual languages, withknew what he looked like. out a state,” he said. Now, after a 60-year career that saw him play Margarit will be officially presented with the award over 1000 roles - also including parts by Jack on April 23 next year at AlNicholson, Nick Nolte and Burt Lancaster cala University in Madrid. dubbing actor Arsenio Corsellas has passed
No longer heard
what’s on Switched on The Malaga Christmas lights will be turned on to start the countdown to Christmas, on Calle Larios, November 29.
It’s back The Granapop Solidarity festival is set to return, on Ground Floor Sala in Granada, after 2 years of absence, December 14.
Fairy Christmas Estepona is set to hold a charity Christmas fair on November 23 at Palacio de Congresos, from 11am to 3pm, with free entry.
Old tunes The Ancient Music Festival will take place in Ubeda and Baeza from November 23 until December 12, where you can enjoy traditional music of the region.
away at age 86.
Me by Elton John Elton John’s first official autobiography is a brutally honest and entertainingly funny window into his life.
Sharply witty and self-deprecating, it deals with troubled relationships, his battle with drugs and cancer and, above all, his love of music. There are amusing anecdotes featuring royals, celebrities and music legends.One of the most refreshing things about the autobiography is Elton’s self-aware humour and complete honesty. The stories are told without vanity, acknowledging times when he felt he acted terribly. For people who are ardent Elton fans there will not be any shocking revelations, but it is a comprehensive, rounded and entirely entertaining account of a global icon. €29.90, Available from The Bookshop San Pedro - www. thebookshop.es
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November 20th - December 3rd 2019
In the Land of (Spanish) Submarines
Jack Gaioni dives deep and reveals how a visionary Spanish naval officer could have changed history and how his legacy is still making waves today
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SINGLE IMPLANT
W
hen asked about the meaning of the lyrics to Yellow Submarine, Paul McCartney and John Lennon called it a “fun song” - a children’s song. They simply wanted kids to sing along. Many music critics weren’t so charitable. Some called the lyrics “nonsense, illogical and meaningless”. One critic used the Latin descriptive “Reductio Ad Absurdum” or “reduced to the absurd.” After all, no one really lives in a yellow submarine. But for one Spanish sailor, his life in the land of submarines converges with “absurdity” in a rather bizarre chapter in Spanish Naval history. Many of us would be surprised to learn that the modern submarine was invented in Spain. Granted, many throughout history have envisioned an underwater vessel (e.g. Leonardo Da Vinci) but a Spaniard named Isaac Peral is credited with the first prototype of today’s modern submarine. He was born in 1851 into a naval family in Cartagena — home to Spain’s Mediterranean fleet. Isaac had sea travel in his DNA. His father was a naval officer and later taught at Spain’s prestigious naval academy in Cadiz. Isaac would enter that academy at 14 years old and went to sea
IMPLANT BRIDGE
at 16 years old. He was decorated for bravery in Cuba and The Philippines. What separated young Isaac from his fellow officers however was his expertise in hydro-graphics - the study of oceans as it relates to maritime travel. He would be awarded the chairmanship of the physics and chemistry departments at the naval academy. There, he committed himself to submarine navigation. By 1884 Peral had designed an advanced torpedo launching sub that was state-of-the art both militarily and scientifically. It featured advanced periscopes, a chemical system to oxygenate and the ability to launch torpedoes while controlling depth.
MAKING WAVES: Isaac Peral (above) was born to sail
Enthusiasm
These were major breakthroughs. Under Isaac’s command, a series of trials were conducted publicly in the Bay of Cadiz. Thousands of spectators cheered wildly as Peral’s creation would submerge, resurface and fire torpedoes successfully at simulated targets. A wave of enthusiastic pride swept Spain. Isaac found himself at the center of attention
IMPLANT DENTURE
LA CULTURA “In the town where I was Lived a man who sailed toborn sea And he told us of his life In the land of submarin We all live in a yellow sub es marine, a yellow submarine…”
and his story ran in all the major newspapers. He became a national hero. After all, this is the country that brought us the Spanish Armada and long legacy of naval superiority. Could Isaac Peral become the restorer of Spain’s faded naval glory? The excitement was shortlived. Many of his fellow officers viewed him as an upstart. His peers became jealous and envious as they tried to delay trials and downplay the submarine’s abilities. They even tried to sabotage construction. His rivals were able to convince the top naval brass that submarines were a useless curiosity and there was no future in underwater naval power. Ultimately, all funding of Peral’s prototype was cancelled. The navy believed that their future was in “above surface” armoured battleships. Heartbroken, Isaac left the navy in 1891 and died four years later. The Spanish Navy has since got serious about building submarines. In 2003, the Spanish company Navatia was awarded the contract to build a new class of submarines at their ship yard in Cartagena. Isaac’s legacy resurfaced (pun intended) as Navantia’s lead ship was named The Isaac Peral in honour of the “man who lived in the land of submarines”. Production has not gone well. Monumental miscalculations at the engineering stage has “reduced to absurdity” the construction of the Isaac Peral series.
Embarrassing
In 2013, (already (10 years behind schedule and millions of euros over budget) officials disclosed that the Isaac Peral was 75 to 100 tons too heavy. Were it to go out to sea, it would not be able to surface! According to El Pais, “the fatal flaw was the result of someone in the design process placing the decimal point in the wrong place.” Rafael Bardaji, Spain’s Defense Minister, said: “It was a fatal mistake from the very beginning - nobody paid attention and reviewed the calculations.” The solution? Lengthen the submarine by 7-10 metres to increase the buoyancy metric. This project was contracted to an American defense contractor Electric Boat Co.
Three years and millions of euros later, The Isaac Peral was successfully made sea-worthy. Mission accomplished? No…. It gets worse. Now 15 years after the submarines were ordered there is a new problem. The Isaac Peral is too long to fit in its home port at Cartagena. It is even more embarrassing than the original buoyancy issue because Spanish authorities had five years to ponder the ramifications of enlarging the sub’s design. Cartagena authorities have proceeded to enlarge the port, construct new piers and dredge the harbor. Full commission of the vessel is planned for 2022 - a full 15 years after construction began. It is perhaps a stretch to intersect the Beatles’ “land of submarines” with the concept of absurdity. But in the case of Isaac Peral that case could be made. He was a man who sailed the seas… in the land of submarines but because of some ineffectual and foolish actions of the Spanish Navy, his legacy is borderline absurd.
DID YOU KNOW? The Queen Regent Maria Christina was so excited about Peral’s project that she ordered her naval aide-decamp to ride along during the test trials. She later sent Isaac a jeweled sword in appreciation. There is speculation that had Peral received proper funding, his submarine would have revolutionized the Spanish Navy and perhaps changed history. For example, had Peral’s submarine been in Manila Bay and Santiago de Cuba during the Spanish American War (1898), the superior American fleet would have been sitting ducks to Peral’s invention. The outcome of the war might have been different. After Peral’s launch in 1888, his prototype ended up in a junkyard. Thanks to some dedicated naval aficionados who recognized its value, it became an exhibit in the Seville World Fair of 1992. Today Peral’s sub is on permanent display in the Naval Museum in Cartagena.
13
November 20th - December 3rd 2019
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14
November 20th - December 3rd 2019
LA CULTURA
Sunday market
Coin
The Costa del Sol’s most popular market is undergoing an exciting new expansion project. La Trocha in Coin, which has over 250 stalls on offer, will now expand its artisan, crafts and handmade range. Located in the old on-site bowling alley, which has been closed for seven years, there is now a great new space for the market to expand. This imaginative space complements the market that’s been running for over 12 years and offers everything from handmade crafts to organic fresh produce It will be open for live bands, weddings, parties and other events. As well as new stalls, the market’s updated area will even feature a live band once a month. La Trocha’s new indoor market, which is set to feature on Channel 5’s Bargain-Hunting Brit’s Abroad, is open every Sunday. The market is the costa’s largest undercover market and has 2,000 parking spaces available. It also has several bars, shops and restaurants available every Sunday.
Greatest Goya INSPIRED: Witches Sabbath (left) and his Caprichos (right) will go on show HE is the giant of Spanish painting who haunts every corner of Madrid. So it is fitting that global great Francisco de Goya should be honoured with the largest ever retrospective of his work. To celebrate the 200th anniversary of Madrid’s Prado Museum, curators have pulled together a once-in-a-lifetime exhibition of over 300 of his paintings and engravings. Among the gems are the 80-piece Caprichos collection, as well as the Notebook, which has never been seen by the
public before. It will also feature the mystical Witches Sabbath (above). Goya, who was born in Fuendetodos, near Zaragoza, in 1746, lived for much of his ilfe in Madrid, before dying in Bordeaux, in 1828. Prado director Miguel Falomir said: “I do not think there is another contemporary artist who has addressed violence against women or social inequalities as Goya did.” The exhibition, which launches this week, will run until February 16 next year.
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ll about
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15 November 20th - December 3rd 2019
Rock the Christmas shopping From now until January 6, it’s jingle bells all the way in the British territory
C
HRISTMAS is finally around the corner, a time for giving to your loved ones and treating yourself. And even if you dread the shopping part, there’s nowhere quite like Gibraltar for instilling the process with a large (British) measure of festive spirit. Main Street shop windows get tinselled up
like a scene from A Christmas Carol - indeed some of Gibraltar’s shops have been trading since Charles Dickens’ time - and it’s all contained in a postage stamp-sized space of just one square kilometre! To make a day of it, start your walk about town from The Yard in Ocean Village where you can get a delicious meal in the middle of
Continues on Page 16
16 November 20th - December 3rd 2019
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Gibraltar greetings
the 330-berth marina. Since the opening of Ocean Village in 2012, the entertainment hub has become a mecca for those wishing to enjoy the Rock’s annual 300 days of sunshine in style. The Yard is perched at the end of one of the pontoons, which gives you the feeling of being at sea. The over-water experience has a calming effect, amplified by the friendly staff and tasty dishes. Feeling well-fed you can then walk into town through the iconic Casemates Square and think of getting a gift for a loved one. One of your first stops should be the crystal sculpture shop at newly-opened Maleras on Main Street. The international chain of shops based in Sweden has carved its own identity over more than a century. Inspired by nature, legend and myth, the glass sculptures will awe your friends and family with their beauty. Veering off Main Street’s central shopping artery, Irish Town where some of Gibraltar’s oldest emporia can be found, is a relatively quirkier and less frenetic experience, especially when there’s a big cruise ship in port.
Class glass Målerås is Gibraltar’s new art glass gallery. In the 1840's the King of Sweden fell in love with the Italian Murano glass, so head hunted two skilled craftsman and set up the first glass blowing factory in the Smålund area under the name of Kosta Boda. The area of Småland quickly expanded to a specialist area of glassblowing. Målerås whose branded store is located in the heart of Main Street was founded in 1890. Since then, the well-respected firm has expanded across the globe, with Målerås’
ll about
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Once there, be sure to check out BIA, a time-honoured institution on the Rock. Here you can find everything you need for your home or office to help you start 2020 in a more organised and practical way. Talking of fresh starts, fitness is sure to be on your mind after the Christmas blowout so why not get ahead of the game with a visit to In Motion? The Irish Town store is stocked with chic sportswear and even sign up for group sessions of yoga, pilates or somatic therapy on site. Being in shape is fashionable and In Motion get this. With its trendy range of gear you can put together a comfortable and functional new wardrobe that will in-
new store on the Rock, marking its 14th opening worldwide. Legendary designer Mats Jonasson now heads Målerås as its artistic director. He first joined back in 1959 as an apprentice engraver but with his innovative techniques and new approach to developing cast glass and post processing he was quickly sought after. In 1977, to prevent acquisition by Kosta Boda who wanted to move the factory away from the village of Målerås, the villagers and employees purchased the shares and under the leadership of Mats Jonasson has grown it from strength to strength. Målerås prides itself on its handmade ‘beautiful crystal creations’, which are ‘inspired by nature, guided by light’.
Its Gibraltar outlet has a fantastic collection of art and glassware for the home or for the perfect gift. They will even post presents direct to your loved ones for Free (conditions apply). Målerås also makes glass gravestones, cremation monuments, street statues, garden features and glass fronted building and reception facades. These can all be discussed at the store, or call for an appointment. All products are handmade in Sweden, where an expert team do all the casting, blowing, painting and engraving. Målerås is located at 202-204 Main Street, opposite the Cathedral. Visit malerasgibraltar.com for more information or email info@malerasgibraltar.com Tel +350 200 51020
spire you to limber up for the new decade. As you emerge from Irish Town into sunny John Mackintosh Square, colloquially known as The Piazza, cross Main Street into City Mill Lane for a range of therapies to complement your new regime at Fit 4 Life. The company offers relaxing massage, beauty treatments and advice on nutrition and anti-aging. Of course, Christmas wouldn’t be Navidad without a few sinful treats and Gibraltar’s floating yacht hotel is the perfect place to unwind after a hectic bout of shopping. Take a U-turn back down Main Street to our Ocean Village starting point and step aboard the Sunborn where you can plonk down your bags and indulge. Order up a cocktail on the poop deck or a slap-up something at one of its top class eateries and have a flutter at the casino - you could win your Christmas pressie money back. It all adds up to a festive shopping experience like no other, and all under the watchful eye of Gibraltar’s famous British bobbies, who are always happy to give you directions. They may even pose for a souvenir photoContinues on Page 33
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www.theolivepress.es
November 20th - December 3rd 2019
Bewitched by fairytale Ronda Y This picture-perfect mountain town has charmed many an artist in time past and many famous people recently yet still retains its mythical appeal. Robert Firth shares the magic
OU don’t have to be writing the next award-winning novel or screenplay to appreciate Ronda, but it helps. Artists from Ernest Hemingway to Orson Wells – both commemorated with busts in the town – have made pilgrimages to Ronda for centuries in search of artistic inspiration. And it’s easy to see why from the moment you begin your journey here in the south east – just outside the town’s walls. For this is the only place you should begin your trip to Ronda. To really understand this historic medina, you have to first leave it and start again outside the town’s walls. From this vantage point, Ronda – dripping with history – perches monumentally above the olive and auburn countryside it overlooks. And through winding dirt tracks by ramshackle farms tended by shepherds with crooks in the shadows of the fortress and up stone steps towards the town, you catch a glimpse of the mythic beauty that transfixed so many artistic geniuses. So stunning is Ronda’s puente nuevo, bridging the canyon the town is built over, that Germany’s most famous poet, Rainer Maria Rike, credited his stay at the Reina Victoria hotel overlooking the ravine with curing his writer’s block.
Remote
Around almost every corner is tucked a stunning church, immaculately preserved historical ruins or a viewing point over postcard landscapes. If entering the town the proper way from the south, a stop-off at the Arab Baths is almost obligatory. Indeed passing through the exceptionally well-preserved 13th century hammam was mandatory for visitors to the Muslim medina when the town was a stronghold of the Emirate of Granada. It was one of the last places to fall to Catholic rule. After the conquest, its remote location in the Sierra de las Nieves National Park made it a refuge for Muslims fleeing perRECENT VISITORS: J.K Rowling, Anne Hathaway, Gordan Ramsay, Doctor Who star Jodie Whittaker and Ricky Gervais
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18 November 20th - December 3rd 2019 From previous page
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secution during the Spanish Inquisition. Reminders of Ronda’s Moorish past are always lurking just a few inches below the surface of its Christian landmarks. The sublime blend of European gothic, renaissance and baroque styles that converge in the Church of Santa Maria unravel on the site of a former mosque. From the church rooftop, you can gain unparalleled views across town towards the mountains of the Sierra de las Nieves. But its appeal is not limited to imposing artefacts of bygone religious struggles. It is also home to the oldest and largest bullring in Spain. While Ronda’s Plaza de Toros seats a modest 5,000, its rueda (the sand pitch where the spectacle takes place) unfurls over 66 metres, making it larger than Madrid’s bullring. And while a few other bullrings predate Ronda’s, none prior to its completion were constructed of its size or entirely from stone. The onsite museum is a must-visit, housing a colourful collection of bullfighting costumes through the centuries. You can also find a unique etching of Francisco high street, Carrera Espinel, tends to get clogged Goya’s La Tauromaquia at the aptly named Muwith large groups of gawking tourseo Taurino, making it an unmissaists, come lunchtime. ble stop-off for art fanatics. When you’ve had your fill of culWith so many sights to see and with ture, Ronda is rife with tapas bars, Don’t miss so much to take in, you’re probaboth hipster and traditional, where bly feeling a bit peckish. Arriving Goya’s La you can stuff yourself with as much on a bitterly cold Sunday morning, cured ham, olives and seafood as Tauromaquia I picked up a sumptuous churros you desire. However, sprinkled in con chocolate in Plaza del Socorro etchings at the between these restaurants off the for the price of a cappuccino back streets around Plaza Espana, is a in the UK, which kept me satisfied bull ring rich selection of eateries catering well into the afternoon. The streets to other national cuisines. I tried around the square are bursting with out Il Forno A Legna on Calle Nuecafes and artisan shops and well va, where I gorged solo on the Tagliere salumi e worth checking out. However, if you’re visiting on formaggi sharing platter, given a Spanish twist a weekend it pays to be an early bird as as the with jamon serrano and salchichon and washed PERFECT PITCH: Painting in the Tajo gorge and (left) the cathedral with its Arabic roots
19 November 20th - December 3rd 2019 down by a sharp glass of vino tinto – divine! If you’re passing the night in Ronda, come day two you’ll be looking to work off some of the calories from all the wine, meat and cheese you’ve scoffed. One of the best walks around the town begins just outside the imposing Almocabar gate on the southern side of the medina. Take a right onto Calle Prado Neuvo and soon you’ll find yourself in a network of vineyards, olive trees and fincas which sit in Ronda’s 1,500m wide Hoya del Tajo. The track down, the Camino de los Molinos, was originally constructed in the mid 20th century to provide access to a hydroelectric power station in the gorge. Today it offers stunning views of the colossal sandstone and limestone plateau Ronda sits upon, and the other less-photographed side of Puente Nuevo. And no one should leave Ronda without taking a walk up (or down) the Jardines de Cuenca. Also known as the Rose Gardens, 25 metres separates the lowest and highest terrace of these ornamental hanging gardens which run above the Tajo de Ronda, offering stunning views towards the Sierra de las Nieves in the east. And with that you’ve probably given Ronda every last breath. But of course, the secret is, you’re never finished with it. Around every cobbled alley there’s another architectural gem and, with every shift in the clouds, another subtle way of viewing Andalucia’s most wild and breathtaking of towns.
BANDOLEROS: Almocabar arch and Spain’s oldest bullring (below)
VINOS de RONDA ONLINE
Outstanding wines from Ronda and Spain
NEW ‘VINOS DE RONDA’ website with 180 different wines Picture by Geoff Scott Simpson
www.vinosderondaonline.com
Trailblazers
The word on the street from some of Ronda’s famous visitors…
Syrian prince Abu’l-Fida (1273-1331) “Elegant and lofty city in which the clouds serve as a turban and its towers as a sword belt”
REGULAR VISITOR: Orson Welles American author Orson Welles (1915-1985) “A man is not from where he is born, but where he chooses to die.”
Argentine writer Jorge Luis Borges (1899-1986) “It is here, in Ronda, in the delicate penumbra of blindness, a concave silence of patios, leisure of the jasmine and the light sound of water, which summoned up memories of deserts.”
Irish novelist and poet James Joyce (1882-1941) “Ronda with the old windows of the houses, the eyes which spy out hidden behind the latticework so that their lover might kiss the iron bars.” German poet Rainer Maria Rilke (1875-1926) “The spectacle of this city, sitting on the bulk of two rocks rent asunder by a pickaxe and separated by the narrow, deep gorge of the river, corresponds very well to the image of that city revealed in dreams.”
Selections from a huge range of bodegas
Jamoneria Granadina vinos, ibericos, gourmet & quesos
Professional ham cutter for all events
Tel: 605 31 58 68 / 952 87 10 13 email: info@tintosderonda.com Calle Setenil 20, 29400 Ronda (Málaga)
20 November 20th - December 3rd 2019
After selling dozens of homes this year, Olvera Properties, urgently needs more stock
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Gateway to history
We want more!
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T’S been so busy for the team at Olvera Properties this year, that they have had to take on a new agent. Step in, cool hand Kevin Park, 59, who arrived in the Serrania de Ronda, having worked for nearly two decades in the real estate market in Italy. With a marketing degree at University College, in London, and an incisive knowledge of the upmarket rural areas of Tuscany and Umbria, he was perfect for the role. “He has hit the ground running,” explains boss Zoe Males. “And just in the nick of time, as the market continued to grow nicely this year.” As well as selling over two dozen properties this year, the agency - which covers a big area from the Serrania de Ronda to the Sierras de Cadiz - has had some excellent clients. While the UK market has slowed down a little, there have been plenty of buyers from other northern European countries. “And that said we had an English client who came over last Friday to see a couple of properties and by Monday morning he had put down a deposit,” continues the motherof-four, who divides her time between Olve-
DREAM TEAM: Kevin Park with Zoe and Anne Marie ra and Wales. The Welsh mother-of-four certainly knows better than most having worked in the area since moving there in 2004. Today, she and her team, which also includes capable Anne Marie, handle over 300 properties, stretching from Ronda to Zahara de la Sierra and from Olvera to Campillos. “It’s a big area, but we know every listing inside out and are good at matching buyers with homes,” explains Zoe. There are some incredible good deals to be had there, particularly in the sleepy towns of Algodonales and Zahara. Either way, the Serrania property
market finally started to pick up again two years ago, after flatlining prices for half a decade. “Thing’s have really picked up in the last couple of years,” adds Zoe. “Townhouses that we were selling for €40,000 three years ago are now selling for €60,000, and people are coming with higher budgets” “There are also a lot more country property buyers in the €260,000 bracket,” she adds. Visit www.andaluciaolveraproperties.com and contact the team at olveraproperties@hotmail.com or (0034) 686 131 908 or 684 09 29 67 in spain or (0044) 7969 450 206 in the UK
It’s been a key Andalucian nerve centre since the time of the Romans and back in the days of Al Andaluz, Ronda was a key stopping off place for travellers. It´s no wonder then that you feel like you have stepped back in time in the cobbled streets of Ronda old town. Around every corner you will find historic palaces and townhouses, each with their very own original entrances. Many hide grand townhouses inside (left), while others lead to emblematic squares.
21 November 20th - December 3rd 2019 The historic Roman town of Setenil de las Bodegas is a real eye opener and amazing for p h o to g r a phy. Nestled in the rolling landscape, 20 minutes out of Ronda, it was built around a series of caves, w h i c h served to keep the wines of the Romans cool in summer, hence its name. It is best to leave your car outside the town, wander up to the old fortress before heading down to the famous overhanging cave for a fine tapas lunch.
Cavemen colony
Secret Serrania
REPUBLIC OF FUN Friendly Arriate sits just five minutes outside Ronda, but is a completely different world. This charming village of nearly 5000 souls is a bustling place and fiercely independent of big sister Ronda, from whom it officially broke free some 400 years ago. It has a warm, homely feel about it and a great mix of local shops, restaurants and places to stay. Pick of the bunch to eat is El Muelle, a converted train station, while you must spend the weekend at either Hotel Arriadh or finca Alcantarilla. Its Fiesta en el Aire festival in early Autumn is now legendary and attracts nearly 20,000 punters over a long weekend.
From bandit hideouts to Roman wine cellars, there is so much to see and do close to Ronda, writes Jon Clarke
Preaching the blues
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ONDA is surrounded by two natural parks, the Sierra de las Nieves and the Sierra de Grazalema, not to mention its very own breathtaking Serrania. These surrounding hills are creaking with wonderful walks and pretty towns and villages to visit, all easy to reach in the car and most with their own excellent places to stay and eat. Here are a few top picks for a trip out of Ronda.
While it’s about as stunning as any of the pretty villages around Ronda, there is one big difference with Juzcar… it’s blue. This is thanks to the Smurf movie that in 2011 decided to use the tiny village as the mythical base of the tiny creatures. It has been used a handful of times since and voted to stay blue some years back. But apart from the many attractions for kids, based around the movie, it is also the perfect place for a walk and to see Griffon vultures and crag martins.
Bandit territory The Serrania was once a major stronghold for bandoleros (bandits) and the tiny towns of Benaojan and Montejaque were famously where many holed up. But there is much more, such as the Cueva de la Pileta, near Montejaque (left), which has the oldest cave paintings in Spain, while Benaojan is the centre of the ham and sausage industry. There is also a fabulous walk from Benaojan Estacion down the river to Jimera de Libar, from where you can get the train back. At each end is a great lunch spot, with hotel Molino del Santo, when open in season, the obvious pick.
OUTDOOR VIBES: Visitors to Fiesta en el Aire festival
Fanning its fortune
Prehistory kept alive For anyone wanting an idea of what life was like in Ronda 5,000 years ago, head to Algaba, a short drive out of Ronda. This wonderful estate has recreated a prehistoric village showing clearly how the area’s forefathers lived, how they ground their bread, decorated their homes and what they did with their dead. There are also lots of rare breeds of cows and goats and you can even stay in the nearby finca if you fancy it. Visit www.algabaronda.com
Roman Ronda A 15-minute drive from Ronda takes you to the ancient city of Acinipo, where the Romans built another ancient settlement. The highest hill for miles around, it still has much evidence of their skills with a large part of its amphitheatre intact and a lot more to look at, not to mention the views. The visitor centre is only open for the morning, but one can always climb up to the amphitheatre out of hours.
An hour walk from Ronda will take you to one of the most stunning natural sites, the Cueva de Abanico (the Fan Cave). Near here celebrated flamenco star Estrella Morente, and husband bullfighter Javier Conde were planning to build a hotel and it is no surprise why. This is one of the most beautiful walks imaginable, with bits of Roman road to discover, ruined towers and then the amazing cave and river at the end, perfect for a picnic.
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22 November 20th - December 3rd 2019
Olive Press Princeton interns Regina Lankenau and Maya Eashwaran run down their rev count in Ronda where slow travel is the new mantra
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WO hours before midnight, the whitewashed walls and polished cobblestones of Ronda’s Barrio de San Francisco are momentarily painted an olive oil gold. We follow the creeping sunrays down a callejon on Calle de Angelita Aparicio, the slap of our sandals the only sound in this corner of the cloistered mountain town. At the end of the dipping alleyway we come to a plot of well-tended land where Jose Luis, a Rondeño with salt-and-pepper hair, waves us over. Crouching down, he tells us his allotment is ‘just a hobby,’ and, chuckling at our fascination, hands over a zucchini the size of his forearm. ‘A gift,’ he says. Shortly after, he adds a cucumber to the mix, SLOW TRAVEL: Maya practices getting lost in the heart of Ronda old town clumps of dirt still clinging to the knobby skin. For many, travelling is a desperate race to hit the top attractions before the sun sets. Itineraries in hand, they eat quickly, walk fast, ticking the sights off their checklists like chores. Each day is swallowed before it can be chewed. But for others, the act of travel is less planned. Days are spent wandering. A 20-minute walk could take an hour. Detours are welcomed, and locals become the best of guides. Slowness, as a concept, began in 1986 with the slow food revolution. After the first McDonald’s opened in Italy on Rome’s Plaza de Spagna, thousands assembled to protest. Then-journalist Carlo Petrini made a name for himself by passing out plates of traditional Italian penne pasta to the protestors. Three years later, Petrini found himself at the forefront of what is now known as the Slow Food Movement, an international organisation dedicated to the preservation of local food and the traditional lifestyle. With tapas and sobremesa among the national pastimes, Andalucia is ideal for this hub in 2014 to provide a different approach novel approach. “There’s no way you can understand the kind of unstructured exploration. And one to tourism in their hometown. town in particular has made Petrini’s slow Espousing the slow philosophy, at one end culture of a place with ordinary tourism. You of this hip locale is a brightly-lit classroom, have to get under the skin of the place,” living principles its mantra. Ronda, surrounded by the Serrania de Ron- at the other an array of artisan products, said Annie. “We’ve been in Ronda for 12 da and punctuated by craggy outcroppings, from wine to fans. The relaxed vibe is com- years now, and we’re still discovering new has managed to maintain agricultural tradi- pleted with a mosaic-encrusted bar, an in- things.” door swing, a back terrace “We came with the intention of assimilating tions dating back to the Rewith picture postcard views into the culture,” John added. conquista. and the friendly presence of Entrelenguas actively works to protect that If, from a distance, the town English Pongo, the dalmatian. cultural authenticity and stave off the influx does not look very alive it is In its five years, Entrelen- of mass tourism. because residents are probclasses, leather guas has formed several “Many places attract tourists by making ably ensconced in one of partnerships offering an up products. These places aren’t real, and the many plazas. Retirees in workshops, authentic taste of life in they aren’t being honest with tourists,” said Panama hats shuffle around organic farming Ronda. English classes, Rodriguez. As a native who doesn’t dance in groups of three, chatting leather workshops, organic flamenco or condone bullfighting, she’s also over drinks. Families gather and free hikes farming and free hikes are keen to show other sides of Spain not covfor al fresco dining, their kids among the immersive Span- ered in glossy travel brochures. playing until late evening. ish experiences on offer. “We know the local produce, the local There is no need for security cameras, as all the terraces are equipped According to Montesinos, ‘the goal of these wines. Those other places are contributing cultural events is to meet other people from to the clichés of Spain,” she added. with observant abuelas. In a corner of one of Ronda’s winding Ronda’ which, he added, ‘is what many peo- However, for the traveller pressed for time, streets, Entrelenguas invites both tran- ple who pass through are most looking for.’ it isn’t always easy to differentiate between sient visitors and settled expats to learn For British retirees John and Annie, Spanish the manufactured and the authentic. It was more about Spanish language, culture, and classes at Entrelenguas are key to helping surprising to learn that the ‘paella individutourism. Mar Rodriguez, Javier Criado, and them become Spanish citizens. They have al’ commonly advertised in restaurants was Alejandro Montesinos — a trio of Rondeño been taking classes for the past three a phenomenon invented for the checklist specialists — founded this cross-cultural months and are proponents of the centre’s traveller; the overpriced dish is far from the family ritual of sharing a cauldron-sized paella on a Sunday. To guide travellers away from the trite, Entrelenguas offers a map highlighting places that have been vetted for authenticity. Distinguishable by an ‘Experience Local’ sign, these shops provide the best seasonal It’s the moment Napogoods. By sourcing their leon’s unpopular army is products entirely from finally sent into retreat by surrounding farms, they a legion of local townsalso contribute to the folk. Pitchforks, muskets town’s sustainable development. and all... And Ronda RoIn the old town, La Tienmantica, when the whole da de Trinidad is all you town dresses up in 19th expect from a traditional century garb, in spring is venta: an impressive linea must-visit event up of jamon iberico hung from the ceiling, and an
The art of taking it slow
Battle stations
23 November 20th - December 3rd 2019
Entrelenguas: coming to the cultural hub INNOVATIVE centre Entrelenguas offers a space where tourists can learn Spanish, visit Ronda and enjoy cultural events. Set up by three local Rondenos in 2014, its aim is to provide an authentic Andalucian experience to its clients, who number hundreds every year. It vows to encourage the Slow travel travel philosophy ‘to get away from the masses and the clichés and focus on having a real time’ while in Spain. Its useful website, with a regularly updated blog, has many helpful articles on Ronda, as well as some excellent podcasts on learning the lingo, as well as where to park your car when visiting the town. Throughout the year, the centre runs cultural pop-ups, music festivals, gastronomic events, art exhibitions, and concerts. Visit www.entrelenguas.es for more information AUTHENTIC: Bounty of jamon at Tienda de Trinidad assortment of chorizo, goat cheeses, wines three brothers, the unpretentious decor and beers from which to sample the full An- and standing-only room does nothing to dalucian experience. reel in unsuspecting tourists. And that is It’s been open since the 1950s and Miguel, precisely its charm. the owner, recommends visIt’s a different story round iting the bakery down the the corner in Ronda’s busstreet, Antonio’s Panaderia The faces of the tling Plaza España, where Alba, to pick up some fresh McDonald’s is doing a brisk bread first. Slicing it in two, people who gave trade — a sight that would he expertly drapes several have made Petrini weep. slices of jamon on top and you directions to Our shoes skid along slipdrenches them in olive oil. places unlisted pery Puente Viejo, worn This classic bocadillo is the smooth by centuries of on maps perfect accompaniment to a travellers, both friendly and stroll through the town. conquering. The walk to the Across the Puente Nuevo, bus station under the swelpast the camera-happy sightseers, sits El tering sun is one we severely underestiLechuguita, a bar offering over 80 different mated; carting our suitcase up the bridge tapas at less than a euro each. Owned by was an almost Sisyphean task.
Earlier that morning, we carefully wrapped the zucchini and cucumber Jose Luis had so thoughtfully gifted us. Sandwiched between a sun hat and a water bottle, the vegetables jostled around in our case during the journey back to the Costa del Sol. Travel can be a dislocating experience in so many ways. But, tucking into our fresh ‘campo’ zucchini stir fry back home, it becomes obvious why it’s worth it. Far more than the picturesque sights and Instagram opportunities, the human memory bank stores the best moments. The faces of the people who gave you directions to places unlisted on maps. The kids who showed you shortcuts to the best views in town. The simple kindness of a farmer.
24 November 20th - December 3rd 2019
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My slice of paradise While she stood out like a sore thumb, Scandinavian expat Karethe
HAD never been kissed so much in my enLinaae was so enamored with her new life in Ronda, she wrote a book tire life. Actually, at the risk of offending Winston about it. The Olive Press presents some of the unexpurgated highlights Churchill, I should qualify that: never had I been kissed as many times, by so many we had just met but already kissed, in a private were consumed with abandon, rinsed down people, all of whom I didn’t know, as that party merely weeks after landing on European with inordinate amounts of spirited liquids. very day. soil. Of course, I couldn’t make out a single Somewhere in the crowd, a man picked up a In my twenties I had lived in Paris, where they conversation, let alone more than a handful of guitar, using the body of the instrument as a kissed you three or even four times, but Pariwords. drum. People started clapping, hands cupped sian kisses were usually cold and restrained, To me, it was all a visual spectacle of gesticuand fingers spread in a rather awkward manoften placed without touching your cheek. lating hands and moving mouths. ner, hitting a beat I could not even attempt to Here, on the other hand, they kissed you so you In spite of the rural campo setting, most of the follow. felt it and heard it and ended up covered in lipwomen were decked out for show, wearing eelOccasionally the musician stopped to gulp stick smudges. This was Andalucía. tight dresses or delicate lace, some in daring down a pint of what looked like undiluted whisI was surrounded by a cacophony combination. All were dripping in ky, but who was I to judge? I was not the one of voices, prattling at ear-splitting jewellery, shocking with colour, playing. A woman, who I later found out was volume, all on top of the others. and vertically enhanced by at his wife and the best flamenco singer in town, Eel-tight Somehow the speakers seemed least 10 centimetres of heels. started humming. Magically, all conversation dresses, able to make out the multiple layThe señores sported soft leather stopped. ers of conversation and jump in loafers and pants in colours that “Vamos, Rosa!” people around her implored. delicate lace with the appropriate responses, men in America would only conThis striking woman, our first real Gitana friend, while ensuring that they didn’t and all dripping sider for their power tools. Womhad a lovely face and a body far too heavy for lose the thread of their own all-imen and men alike had glasses in her years, all covered in black. in jewels portant account. their hands, the majority waving Rosa started singing tenderly, then with inIt was the very first fiesta we were a lit cigarette around dangerouscreasing volume, until finally she was literally invited to. We hadn’t gotten to ly close to some señora’s newly yelling. Her hands were hitting the air and there know many people in Ronda yet, but one of the ironed and heavily sprayed hair. A gentleman were tears in her eyes. Her voice was different few friends we made had brought us along. I with soot-covered hands was tending to the from any singing that I had known, the tones was amazed, actually, as many expats will barbecue. Flames enveloped what looked like more eastern, so wild and unbridled. spend years in Spain hardly ever talking to loan entire side of an animal. Bread, olives, toThough I did not understand the words, her pacals and here we were, surrounded by ‘friends’ matoes swimming in oil, and charbroiled meat thos almost made me feel like crying myself.
Suddenly, the beat changed. The crowd broke into a cheery refrain that everybody seemed to know. Pilar, a statuesque woman in her sixties, stood up, put her arms in a showy, bullfighter-like stance, and started dancing what they called the Sevillana, spurred on by more clapping and crazed cheers. I was an actress who had woken up on a foreign stage. My mind became a camera, panning away from the party, travelling along a mountain ridge where faraway olive trees were silhouetted against an electric blue late afternoon sky. The setting sun reflected golden tones onto an enormous vertical cliff ahead of us. If I stretched my neck and looked straight up from the deep valley where we were, I could see tiny houses perched dramatically on the edge some 160 metres right above us. That was Ronda, our new hometown. I looked back to the party, to these lively, loud, and passionate men and women. Among them were Jaime, my husband, Mexican-born and half-Spanish, perfectly blending in with the cheery mob. Would I ever feel like a local, even if I would never even remotely look like one? Me, so utterly Scandinavian, naturally blonde and now naturally greying, predictably blue-eyed, safely colour-coordinated, stereotypically healthy and strong, and with far-too-sensible shoes. I was a square, dull and mute oddity in a world of exciting, loud, curvaceous beings. Excerpts (right) from Casita 26 - Searching for a Slice of Andalucian Paradise by Karethe Linaae Mascot Books, Virginia, USA, 2019
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25 November 20th - December 3rd 2019
Living life on the edge
To us, Ronda was a place like no other. In particular that the Rondeños lived on a cliff. The town was constructed on either side of an extremely deep gorge, with rock formations looking like they were sketched by Dr. Seuss himself. The scientific explanation, for those who might understand, was that it rested on a peridotite mantle diapir of something called ultramafic rocks formed in early Miocene time. In laywoman’s terms, as far as I could decipher, this meant that some 100,000 years ago what we now knew as the valley of fertile, rolling hills beneath our town was once the actual ocean floor. El Tajo, the gorge that divided the town in half, was shaped by the force of water pushing through deeper and deeper into the rather porous sandstone and limestone rock, pretty much the same way that water had shaped the Grand Canyon. Living in Ronda, therefore, meant literally living on the edge with some of the world’s most spectacular views!
PRECARIOUS: Buildings facing the gorge and snow on statue (far left)
A night walk This particular misty November night, there was barely a soul outside. I was a lone latenight walker. The houses overhanging the cliff were looking more precarious than ever, perched as they were on the edge of the steep gorge. Above them I saw stars, millions of them, a phenomenon I had forgotten existed. You never see stars and planets where we had come from, in the light-polluted cities of America. Was this the magic that had attracted writers, painters, and artists from around the world, both past and present, to this very place where I was standing?
Where time stood still Settling in rural Andalucía was like taking a step back in time. It didn’t mean that people here lived in the past, more so that they lived with the past. One could still see the occasional donkey in our barrio, though more often there would be horses cloppety-clopping through the streets. Labourers still stopped at the bar first thing in the morning to have a couple of straight shots of aguardiente before driving off to work. When we bought a dozen screws with Emilio at the hardware store, he would still wrap them in a piece of newspaper. To get a zipper, we lined up at the haberdashery with seven ladies before us, while the matron up front took an eternity deciding on the few centimetres of ribbon to match her doily curtains.
Plaza life moves slowly So this was our new ‘hood’ - Barrio San Francisco, or the Saint Francis neighbourhood. The sun was fully up. In the plaza, old men started filling the benches. Like comfort-seeking cats, they would follow the sun, moving along to different seating positions while watching life pass by - probably, though I couldn’t say for sure - continuing the same eternal debate about Spanish politics. The fall leaves were sailing down onto the cobblestone square, filling the central fountain on this November day. As the morning progressed, I imagined that most things around here had probably been the same for centuries, at least when it came to the seated old men and the predawn cries of the lonely donkey.
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Carried away! HE is currently on a world tour, having starred at the London Guitar Festival. So it is no surprise that Paco Seco’s Ronda Guitar House is fast becoming one of the most prestigious cultural venues in Andalucia. He and his team offer an exceptional and emotive concert in a very intimate setting. Recognized by Lonely Planet, Rick Steves and Le Routard, this is one evening’s entertainment not to be missed on a visit to Ronda. Run by his English wife Lucy, the team offer a fabulous cultural journey with local Ronda wines served up alongside some of the best strains of Spanish guitar. The concerts take place at 19:00 each evening, and cost just 15€.
HE stunning mountain scenery, the windy, wellkept roads and the hundreds of dirt tracks, is it any wonder the Serrania de Ronda is the definitive cyclists’ paradise. The region, hugging the Costa del Sol, counts on hundreds of miles of winding roads and tracks, that are perfect for both road and mountain bikers. There are numerous circular routes to be taken, from short one-hour bimbles to whole-day, ten hour marathons. You might also decide to take a week-long trip staying in different villages along the way, each with their own varied hotels and restaurants. Alternatively, get off-road and you could find yourself on an ancient Roman road to Grazalema or a sharp descent towards a ruined Moorish bath. Even better, find yourself on an ancient smuggling track heading down a secret valley.
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Spin around The Serrania is the definitive place to head off on a cycling tour, writes Olive Press editor and Ronda resident Jon Clarke
Expert
I have been riding around the Serrania since I arrived here in 2002 and I reckon I know nearly 100 excellent spots to completely get away from it all. One of my favourite mountain rides heads up out of Ronda through the gently sloping Arriate valley towards the Puerto del Monte pass near La Cimada. Here you enter Cadiz province heading down off-road at a rate of knots for two or three kilometres into historic Setenil de las Bodegas, where after lunch or morning coffee, you head along an ancient bandits’ track, called Contrabandistas, into the charming Ronda la Vieja valley and then round the back to Ronda.
BREATHTAKING: The stunning Zahara lake and (right) approach to Ronda You could try doing tracks like this on your own, but better to use one of the various professional cycling companies that organize trips around the Serrania and further afield. One of the longest-running companies, Andalucian Cycling Experience, I know well. They have been guiding riders through Ronda’s stunning scenery for 15 years. Husband and wife team Ashley and Claire Higgins cater for all ranges of ability from their base in the picturesque village of Montecorto. And they sort everything out from the bikes to accommodation to food. From novices and families to budding Chris Froomes, the British expats’ expert tours will take cyclists into the heart of one of Spain’s most stunning settings. “We have a range of road bikes for hire and we even have children’s chariots and kids’ seats so the whole family can come along,” says Ashley. “If there are people on the coast, they can come up and join us for a day’s riding, or they can come up and spend three days to a week.”
Legendary
Their guided Day Rides are legendary and a day not to be forgotten, taking riders around both the Serrania and into the Grazalema Natural Park. “We have loads of routes to suit your fitness and requirements,” explains Claire, whose children go to school in Ronda. Ashley and Claire set up the business after swapping the UK ‘rat race’ for the hills of Andalucia in 2004. They fell in love with Montecorto after two years scouring Malaga and Ronda for the perfect base. Mountain biking along trails or road cycling will take riders through hidden gems like Zahara, Setenil and the Roman ruins of Acinipo. Accommodation ranges from fully-furnished villas with swimming pools that sleep 4 to 6 people to comfy townhouses - perfect to relax in after a day’s riding. “Our mini breaks, which are a 3-night minimum
stay are based out of a charming townhouse in our village of Montecorto, a more charming white village you won’t find,” adds Claire. A fully qualified mechanic is on hand - with a van to scoop up anyone finding the going tough and 40% of bookings are from recommendations or satisfied customers returning for another holiday. The company can also rent an extensive fleet of hybrid, road bikes and even e-bikes for those, who might need an extra push. Visit www.andaluciancyclingexperience.com or call 952 184 042
27 November 20th - December 3rd 2019
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T is amazing how many small family-run wineries in Ronda have popped up in the last decade. The bodega count now stands at over 30, with many producing some of the most exciting wines around Spain these days. A huge variety of styles and grapes are being used, including various local indiginous varieties, such as Rome, Melonera and Tinto Velasco. The area now has its own appellation and there is a well signposted wine route, which aficionados can follow around the local valleys and villages. Most of them can be visited, normally by appointment, and many offer tapas and a comprehensive tour of the vineyard. A superb place to start is at the bespoke vineyard of Frederic Schatz, the German pioneer, who started the ball rolling (well second time, if you read on) in the 1980s.
Award-winning
It was then that he and his father (who had wine in his veins) started to plant various varieties of traditional grapes, including Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon, with an eye on producing the now award-winning wines he makes today. He has six in total, with one Finca Sanguijuela 2011, being picked as ‘one of Spain’s finest’ at the Penin wine awards in Madrid last month. Originally from Northern Italy, Frederic travelled around Europe until he found an estate on the way up to the historic Roman town of Acinipo.
Grape expectations Wine tourism is really on the up around Ronda with its 30-plus bodegas expanding by the year, writes Gabriella Chidgey
LOCATION, LOCATION: Chinchilla At a height of 1000 metres this settlement sits around an ancient still-intact Roman amphitheatre. Literally named the ‘city of wine’, it was one of the very few settlements of the Roman Empire that exported wine back to Rome. The town even had its own coinage, appropriately with vine tendrils on one side. The neighboring village Setenil de las Bodegas handily provided its famous caves as cellars. During the first few years in Ronda, Frederic supported his organic and biodynamic vineyard by growing and selling flowers. In addition to being organic his estate is carbon-neutral and he can explain the changes and
growth of the Ronda wine industry better than anyone. Another magnificent place to visit, one constantly evolving and growing, is Chinchilla. Based out of Bodega Dona Felisa, in one of the most privileged spots in the whole of Andalucia, it is well set up for wine tours, and astings. The family behind the wine have been constantly evolving for well over a decade and, apart from planning a new apart-hotel, are also set to open a brand new vineyard, which will be one of Ronda’s largest at 25 hectares. Another stunning spot a bit further up the road is the Ramos-Paul winery Bodega El Chantre, which has majestic views across two provinces.
Pilar and Jose Ramos-Paul continue the tradition honed by the Romans, Phoenicians and Moors but have created their own caves deep within the hillside to store their bottles following the wine’s two years in French oak barrels. Do arrange a private visit and tasting of their red wine, if you are interested in buying a few bottles. Another fascinating place is bodega Vetas, comprising only one hectare in Arriate, the smallest vineyard in the Serrania de Ronda, but perhaps with the greatest reputation. A pioneer of Ronda wines and an esteemed winemaker at local vineyards, since the 1990s, Juan Manuel Vetas’ Petit Verdot
is very highly sought after and also very hard to find outside the region since the production is so small. Another good place is Los Aguilares, with wine expert Janice Robinson describing its Pinot Noir as her ‘find of the London wine fair’ three years ago. Also look out for the excellent value Bodegas Viloria. A large family affair, this farm turned vineyard produces a number of red wines, but its white Lagarejo Blanco is the best; a perfect light, summer tipple and inexpensive to boot. Lastly, don’t miss La Melonera, which has planted a few lines of grapes of this variety. The Grand Tour once includ-
TRAILBLAZER: Federico ed Ronda so the winery chose to name its white and red, La Encina del Ingles. Or perhaps they understand modern British drinking tastes. Probably not, since the more expensive Payoyo Negra celebrates the local goat.
28 November 20th - December 3rd 2019
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Traditional dishes of Ronda
There are mountains of great restaurants in Ronda, writes Dining Secrets of Andalucia editor Jon Clarke
E’S cooked for Gareth Bale and Cristiano Ronaldo over the last year and trained at two famous Michelin starred restaurants, run by Martin Berasategui. But it was at Ronda’s legendary Tragabuches restaurant - working with the likes of Dani Garcia - that Martin Abramzon really fell in love with the mountain town. As well as finding some of Spain’s best ingredients locally, he also found a wife, so it was only natural that the Argentinian chef would finally open his own restaurant in the town. But don’t expect to find it easily. And that FRIENDLY: At Cerveceria Bandolero is all part of the plan. For his new joint Kutral (www. In a huge industrial unit, it is restaurantekutral.com) sits in a the most spacious restaurant super-cool spot on the edge of in town, by far. It may also have Ronda’s industrial estate. some of the best food.
NEW BREW: Martin Abramzon at Kutral While focusing on great cuts of the town’s grandest restaurant meat cooked on an open paril- Pedro Romero (www.rpedrola-style Argentinian bbq, there is romero.com) sitting opposite a lot more besides, with a burra- the bullring, with wonderful bullta salad with dry tomatoes a top fighting photos and posters, as pick and the lemyou might expect. on curd pudding Run by brotha total winner. ers Carlos and He trained at It is just the latest Tomas, a top the cathedral in a long line of sommelier, you excellent places should try the of food, to eat in the Serfantastic rabo de rania de Ronda. Akelarre, in San toro and let him Whether you select the wine. Sebastian are after tasty A total contrast is tapas, simple inEl Almacen, run gredients or Miby talented Javichelin-starred mastery, care of er Pimentel, a local Ronda lad, Benito Gomez at Bardal, there who went around the world and is so much on offer. back before opening his restauFor history lovers take a ride to rant two years ago. It’s a stylish spot, with a great selection of music, including a huge pile of records... but you are here for the food and Javier doesn’t disappoint, having trained for a year at San Sebastian’s three-Michelin cathedral of cuisine Akelarre, before a stint in Ireland and two years in London. Soulful Almocabar has been consistently one of the town’s finest places to eat for over a decade, with a superb wine list and atmosphere personified, particularly if eating in the square outdoors at summer time. In the same square in Barrio San Francisco is an exciting new addition, Cerveceria Bandolero, which really could be the friendliest place to eat in Andalucia. It’s very much service with a smile from these two cousins, who run backwards and forwards charming guests and
SOUL FOOD: Monolo at Almocobar and
29 November 20th - December 3rd 2019
RONDA ALL STARS: Javier at El Almacen, Benito at Bardal, Javier at Porton and Tomas and Carlos at Pedro Romero
AUTHENTICITY: Is order of the day at Porton and (right) El Muelle de Arriate, where the menu is always fresh and original plying you with excellent simple and local fare, with a bent towards Carnes a la Brasa. For wine lovers you mustn’t miss Entre Vinos, which has over 100 wines from Ronda, and always has a dozen wines available by the glass. There are some excellent tapas and it is a charming place to while away a few hours. Just up the hill a little is Siempre Igual, which is exactly that ‘Always the same’, and a bloody excellent place to enjoy tapas and some excellent wine with
(above) team at Siempre Igual
friends. Run by a friendly family team (below left), they always have some experimental new dishes, worth a try and you are in a great location, just up from the bullring. For those up in the heart of Ronda authentic Porton – an institution run by Javier for the last 40 years - has wonderful old photos on the wall and a guaranteed feel good factor. Here, you will find my favourite Ronda tapa, the wonderful quails egg with ham on toast. Venturing out of Ronda there are so many amazing country escapes for lunch or supper. My favourites are Molino del Santo, in charming Benaojan, now shut for the winter, as well as El Muelle, in Arriate, which boasts hundreds of regulars who drive all the way from the coast - and even Sevilla - for lunch. It’s no surprise, this old railway storeroom being extremely atmospheric and boasting excellent local authentic fare to boot. Run by friendly Dutchman Frank Rottgering, alongside talented local chef Isa, there are plenty of new dishes each month and
SELECTION: One of the best wine lists is at Entre Vinos the menu is full of their colourful creations. The wine list is simple but inspired and the food is always amazing fresh and beautifully served… Even better are the prices. It would be unfair not to mention chef Ian Love at La Cascada, at hotel Molino del Puente (www.hotelmolinodelpuente.com). He and his wife have been pleasing the punters with their tasty
creations for well over a decade now and its amazing riverside terrace cannot be beaten in good weather. For great coffee and the best place to watch the footie and grab a snack Buenos Aires in the heart of Ronda’s Calle la Bola cannot be beaten. www.diningsecretsofandalucia.com
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Ronda has many romantic and hip places to stay, plenty in the nearby countryside AUTHENTIC: Ronda Romantica is getting great reviews
Dream in City of Dreams
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HERE are many magical places to stay in the ‘City of Dreams’, as Dutch poet Rilke once dubbed Ronda.
IDYLLIC: Arriadh Hotel (top) and El Anon
But with over 1000 places to stay in the city and nearby area, getting it right is anything but easy for a first timer. Just outside Ronda you should ensure to check out Hotel Arriadh (www.arriadhhotel.com), which counts on some of the best views anywhere in Spain. Often described as ‘zen-like’, the clean lines and maximising of light and landscape is all thanks to the talents of Dutch couple John and Wilfred. Excellent value, it has an amazingly peaceful garden and a splendid infinity pool and can also offer meals if required. On the other side of the valley look out for charming converted mill Molino del Puente (www. hotelmolinodelpuente.com). This is a fabulous restaurant with rooms, thanks to chef Ian Love, who has been producing superb food for decades.
Alongside his wife Elaine Love, this historic spot is very popular with visitors from the coast and, best of all, is well connected, while being very peaceful. In Ronda itself, a great budget offering is Hotel Morales (www. hotelmorales.es), which sits in the heart of the town, perfect for the shops, and the main transport links. More luxurious is Reina Victoria, run by the Catalonia group (www.hoteles-catalonia.com) Which was built over 100 years ago by British builders when the train line first arrived here from the coast. Standing in an enviable spot overlooking the gorge it’s a good place to luxuriate and enjoy the amazing views. One excellent, brand new option, just opened is Ronda Romantica apart-hotel (visit www.alcantarilla.co.uk) which comprises
five tastefully-converted apartments in a charming barrio just on the edge of the old town (see side bar). For complete authenticity and to sample a taste of the idyllic mountain life, consider spending a few days at Finca Alcantarilla (www.alcantarilla.co.uk) a wonderful B&B, just ten minutes out of Ronda. Another fabulous place to stay at the western end of the Serrania in Jimena is Hostal Anon (www. hostalanon.com). It’s been a classic stopover for travelers for nearly four decades and the rooms have a Spanish rustic feel, while the outside intertwining terraces have a Moorish décor. Owner Suzanne has lived in Andalucia for over 40 years and the place often comes alive on weekend nights with a very liberal fun feel.
Calling all romantics!
You can really feel the weight of history at Ronda Romantica apartments. The most exciting new place to stay in Ronda this year was once the historic home of Pedro Romero, who constructed the town’s stunning bullring. Beautifully converted by local building firm Ari Contratas, it counts on many of its original features including vaulted ceilings, ancient doors and rejas, while also being the very definition of luxury. “It was a delight to work with such a charming historic building and to have converted it to a high standard of luxury,” said boss of Ari Vicente Compas. And, as a special offer for Olive Press readers this winter, anyone booking to stay at Ronda Romantica for two nights, can have a third night completely FREE. Contact gabschidgey@gmail.com or call 654152122 to reserve your stay.
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Festive fun 3 5 good reasons to visit Gibraltar at Christmas time
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- The pastel homes, doors with archways, and green shutters of Gibraltar--not particularly Andalucian or Victorian British in nature--might transport you to the north of Italy. The reason: in 18th century Gibraltar, 34% of its population was from Genoa, and today this lasting influence can be seen in its architecture and the distinctly Italian surnames of its citizens.
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- Despite its five kilometre length and one kilometre width, the Rock boasts 52 kilometres of bombproof underground tunnels. Fearing a German invasion during WWII, Gibraltarians built nearly an entire city below ground, complete with electric generators, telephone lines, bakeries, and hospitals.
November 20th - December 3rd 2019
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- There are over 150 caves inside the Rock, the most well known of which is St. Michael’s Cave. A twisting maze of limestone, the cave was created from a steady drip of water that eroded the stone over time. St. Michael’s Cave is the most visited cave of Gibraltar’s Rock.
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- Gibraltar is home to the Barbary macaque, a species of monkeys that have been celebrated for years. From 1915 to 1991, the British army and the Gibraltar Regiment named, fed, and controlled the monkey population. Some of these detail-oriented records taken by the so-called Keeper of the Apes were published in the Gibraltar Chronicle. One such announcement reads: “Rock Apes. Births: To Phyllis, wife of Tony, at the Upper Rock, on 30th June 1942— a child. Both doing well.”
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- Gibraltar is the setting for two of the James Bond movies, and is the shocking backdrop for Bond’s famous burial at sea scene in You Only Live Twice.
On March 20th, 1969, John Lennon married Yoko Ono on the Rock of Gibraltar. The iconic couple initially wished to get married in Paris or at sea. However, due to the difference in their nationalities, there would be a delay in having a ceremony in any place but Gibraltar, where Lennon’s British citizenship would allow them to marry immediately.
Gibraltar International Airport has a runway that cuts through one of the territory’s busiest 4-lane highways. If you think the commute you take every day is bad, imagine having to wait for a plane to take off or land for the road to open back up again.
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Fashionably fit
Admiral Nelson’s legacy in Gibraltar lies beyond cemetery walls DESPITE its name, Trafalgar Cemetery is home to just two victims of 1805’s almighty battle. Instead, many tombstones commemorate those who died in three devastating yellow fever epidemics around the same time. Nonetheless, this tiny pocket of Gibraltar still radiates patriotism. Its moss-covered graves and low-hanging branches could tempt anyone in for a moment of reflection while en-route to the cable car. The cemetery – originally known as Southport Ditch Cemetery – was abandoned for many years until a huge restoration effort in the 1980s. Each year on the Sunday closest to the battle of Trafalgar (October 21), the Royal Navy holds a ceremony here.
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While most of those that died at Trafalgar were buried at sea, Admiral Nelson’s body was being transported back to London for a state funeral and burial at St Paul’s cathedral. However, he was initially taken to Gibraltar’s Rosia Bay, in his ship HMS Victory, where his body was put in a vat of rum to conserve it, before being sent to the UK. But the connection goes deeper, before his heroic death Nelson would have been a regular on the Rock, especially at naval haunts like the Victualling Yard and Old Naval Hospital. And it was his close friend Aaron Cardozo – a wealthy Gibraltarian merchant – who inherited Nelson’s medal commemorating his victory in the Battle of the Nile.
AT InMotion, we are passionate about fitness and fashion in equal measure. Our mantra is that activewear can be stylish as well as functional. That’s why we have carefully curated a collection of the finest activewear brands from across the globe that promises to provide you with the perfect balance of style, comfort, and practicality - so that you can look and feel great whatever your active pursuit. Whether you are off for a run, to the gym, a dance or yoga class, or just keeping up with friends and family, InMotion will take care of all of your fashion needs. And you can be sure that we don’t favour style over substance. Quality is very important to us, which is why each of our brands has been carefully chosen to ensure we offer you the very best technical fabrics and high-performance pieces. But don’t take our word for it come visit our store to discover our fantastic collection. InMotion store - where fashion meets function -
PROPERTY Bad to worse 35
November 20th - December 3rd 2019
By Jacque Talbot
ENVIRONMENTALISTS have warned that a new law making illegally-built homes legal could reopen the floodgates to dodgy construction projects again. Homeowners who unwittingly bought illegal property found themselves in dire straits, as they were unable to sell their homes or receive the benefits normally granted to property owners. The Andalucian government passed a decree last month legalizing these properties. But now they are facing a backlash from left-leaning members of Adelante Andalucia and environmental activists who believe that the decree’s looser restric-
New law authorising illegal homes sets ‘terrible precedent’ claims green lobby
tions around construction could spark another illegal building frenzy. A spokesperson for Ecolo-
gists in Action said: “This decree includes very dangerous new measures
Costa packet Golden smile MARBELLA’S longest established real estate firm has been crowned ‘best real estate agency in Spain’. Panorama Properties, which has two offices on the Golden Mile, received the prestigious prize at the European Property Awards. The firm was founded by American expat Christopher Clover over five decades ago. Panorama’s victory means that it is now automatically nominated for ‘best real estate agency (single office) in Europe’. The winner will be announced at the International Property Awards in London on December 2. Clover, whose children Alex and Katinka also work in the company, said: “Winning the award for best real estate agency in Spain is a reflection of our team’s joint effort, and of our commitment to clear and transparent communication and providing an unbeatable service to our clients.”
Finance famine A SHORTAGE of finance available for smaller construction firms is leading to a Spanish house building crisis, industry leaders have warned. More and more banks are refusing to provide the costs that small and midsized house builders need, according to the Asprima builders’ association. The belt tightening means that, increasingly, only the biggest developers who can afford to stump up between 30% and 40% of the money for projects themselves are able to secure the necessary funds to build. Spain has significantly fewer large developers than its European neighbours, meaning that the lending restrictions are having a disproportionate impact on house building on the mainland. Some 150,000 new homes per year are needed across the country to keep up with demand.
PROPERTY prices have surged on the Costa del Sol more than anywhere else in Spain, a new report has found. According to property search site Pisos.com, the cost of secondhand homes in Malaga province and coastal areas saw the biggest increase in the country, hitting €2,402 per square metre, an increase of 7.9%. The rise has been driven by tourists buying holiday homes on the coast. By contrast, in the city of Malaga prices have held firm. Despite the surge, a spokesperson for Pisos.com said: “Property prices aren’t going to make any big surprises in the coming months. “The market has undergone some very gradual improvement in recent years, growing slowly but surely.”
that will encourage illegal building, and sets a terrible precedent.” The group also argued that the decree was created purely to please property moguls and ‘illegal builders’ and would encourage building on a massive scale, without there being sufficient buyer demand or proper financing.
Amnesty
Maura Hillen, president of Abusos Urbanisticos Andalucia, told the Olive Press: “You can’t turn back time. This decree is making the best of a bad situation. “It is not an amnesty, as some have called it - these homeowners are paving the way for regulation.”
BUSINESS
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November 20th - December 3rd 2019
We need more immigrants BUSINESSES in one of Spain’s most unpopulated areas have called on the Government to make it easier for immigrants to work there. The northern province of Soria is one of the most deserted areas in Europe. Companies there are in desperate need of workers, but the legal paperwork needed is making it hard for them to source potential employees. “The lack of workers has never been so staggering,” said president of Soria’s Chamber of Commerce, Alberto Santamaria, who has asked for help from the Secretary of State for Migration. The Chamber of Commerce estimates that some 1,700 workers will be needed in Soria three years from now - and if none come, there is concern companies will have to close or put their expansion plans on hold.
Bad for business
TURMOIL in Catalunya is turning British companies off investing in Spain. UK firms believe the political instability in the pro-Independence region will lead towards an ‘unstable’ future, according to recent data compiled by International Financial Analysts (AFI).
The report suggests that 51% of British companies believe that political unrest in Catalunya will continue over the next two years, while 28% expect the instability to escalate. Only 21% believe it will reduce in that time. The survey also indicated that three out of ten British firms have considered changing their current and future investments in Spain, owing to the recent crisis in the northeastern region.
Time out for overtime SPANISH companies have been fined €1.26 million for failing to maintain records of staff working hours. New rules introduced in May forced employers to register the hours put in by workers and store them for four years. The PSOE government brought in the measures in a bid to crack down on unpaid overtime. Between May and October, investigators had over 5,000 complaints submitted to them relating to inadequate completion of paperwork. The Ministry for Labour has begun investigating 2,000 cases related to oversights in recordkeeping and 107 compa-
Companies who fail to pay employees for working overtime will get hefty fines as a new law comes into force
nies have so far received fines of up to €113,000. Next year, in conjunction with local councils, the government is launching a crusade against
Making tracks FIVE firms have bid for the new high-speed rail service from Malaga to Madrid. Train bosses at Adif have confirmed that several firms have made bids for the line, which is set to open in 2021, with state operator Renfe being one of them.
businesses which fail to adequately document employees’ working hours. Spanish workers are thought to
Currently Renfe has the monopoly on rail services from the Costa del Sol to Madrid, but new government legislation will see that all change, as it aims to keep up with EU rules. The bidders’ names have not yet been announced but even foreign firms such as Virgin and Avanza may enter the bidding war.
put in 2.6 million unpaid hours per week, down slightly from a peak of 3.5 million in 2015. When the law was announced in May, several organisations representing employers criticised the new rules, saying they would drag Spain back into the past when workers had to clock on and clock off. At the time acting labour minister Magdalena Valerio dismissed these concerns, saying that modern technology has made it easier to keep records electronically.
Lining up Growth
STRUGGLING Vodafone Spain has bounced back from a poor start to the year, gaining customers and reducing losses. The phone network added 112,000 customers across its mobile, internet and TV services in a three month period. While turnover dropped 8.7% between July and September, it was an improvement on the 9.3% reduction it recorded between April and June. Vodafone attributed the fall in profits to a temporary increase in costs, linked to its decision to leave the football streaming sector. The phone giant’s income from its services was €978 million between July and September. Vodafone started in the UK in 1983 and won the license to build Britain’s first mobile phone network. It broke into the Spanish market in 2000 when Vodafone Spain was founded. It is now the world’s number one mobile network, with 444 million customers in 26 countries.
BUSINESS How to manage your money
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November 20th - December 3rd 2019
In part one of this guide about controlling your finances, we explore how a Lifetime Cashflow Plan can ensure you tick off your bucket list, without running the bank dry.
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s a Chartered Financial Planner I de- Spend less money than you earn: Spend more vote a fair amount of time helping my than you earn, you’ll end up in a spiral of debt clients manage their investment por- that’s hard to recover from. Spend exactly tfolios and income in order for them what you earn, and you’ll never be prepared to achieve their life goals and aspirations, as for major life changes. Spending less than well as meet regular and ‘one off’ expenses. you earn allows you the freedom to save and This is also usually accompanied by a written prepare for the future. The bigger the gap be‘Lifetime Cashflow Plan’- a living document tween your income and spending the better. that shows them – given certain agreed as- Plan for the future: Try to pay bills ahead of sumptions, whether they will run out of mo- schedule. Hold an emergency fund that allows ney before they die or go to their graves with you to deal with unexpected car repairs or an excessive amount of money and unfulfilled medical bills. Have a solid retirement plan dreams. It is a living document and as such to maintain income when you’re unable to gets updated at our annual work anymore. Finances should review to include any chanalways look beyond the current It is vital to ges in circumstances – such as month and an emergency fund an unexpected inheritance or of six months earnings is recomknow where your perhaps a future wedding for mended. a child. For most the need to Make your money make momoney goes, analyse and review spending ney: Money can grow while you and saving habits is extremely rather than it just sleep, provided you actually save beneficial. some. Properly invested money disappearing How you manage, spend, and grows over time, so invest in invest your money has a prothings that will earn you more found impact on your life, yet most of us reach money than you had before. Sometimes that’s adulthood without ever being taught basic an investment account, starting a business, or money management. It can feel like a lot of improving your education to get a promotion. paperwork and numbers, but it is just as much It is vital to know where your money goes, about psychology, habits, and the values you rather than it just disappearing from your acchoose to live by. So your mindset matters just count. Budget—even a basic one - is probably as much as the maths, and the fundamentals the best way to make sure you’re spending should never, ever change. less than you earn, and starting early is imporHere are a few simple rules that may seem tant. A habit of categorizing bills & tracking obvious, but you would be amazed at the expenses will help prevent financial problems number of people that don’t follow them and before they start. will help improve your financial life: Calculate what you bring in each month, then
write down all of your regular expenses. This includes recurring costs like your rent or mortgage, utilities, car payments, etc. For more variable costs, you may need to track what you spend over time. Monitor all expenses for a month or two, adding up everything to see how much you’re spending. Ideally, the amount spent each month should be lower than the amount you earn. If not, carefully examine your list and see which expenses can be reduced. For some, this could be as easy as cutting luxury items, for others, hard decisions may have to be made. Once set up, a web or app based budgeting service can even manage it for you. You can also use it to set budgets for individual categories and notifications if you go over. Once you make a habit of tracking your spending, it’s time to establish a budget. Approaches may vary for different people, with some opting to allocate amounts into specific life categories: Fixed costs (60%): Ideally your rent/mortgage spending should be kept at less than 30% of income. Fixed costs should include every cost that you know is coming each month, - rent, gas, groceries, mobile phone bill, insurances and anything else that generally stays the same. These are core expenses essential for day-to-day living. Savings (10%): Shorter-term savings go in this category - saving up for holidays, gifts,
or large purchases like a new TV. Also include cash for an emergency fund here, a liquid amount for unexpected emergencies or bills. Investments (10%): As you build savings you’ll eventually want to invest some money so it grows over time. If you have any investments like a company pension that come out of your salary, count them here. Guilt-free spending (20%): For the finer things in life. Dining out, drinking, or splurging on entertainment or luxury goods. As long as you have the other three categories covered you can spend this money without feeling guilty about your budget. If you cannot afford something, don’t buy it! Ultimately, budgeting means knowing where your money is going and planning ahead. If you don’t want to go to the trouble of writing down every penny you spend, this model will still cover most of what you need to budget for. Remember, the more you save now, the more money you’ll have to buy a house, retire early, or achieve other goals later in life (continued next issue). Please note, the above does not constitute specific advice or recommendations for your own circumstances and is intended as a guide only. Always seek professional assistance where required. For a free no obligation review please contact me either by email or phone.
Jonathan now has an office Malaga, which can be found here: Alameda Colón, 9, 1, 7. 29001 Málaga, Spain. Phone: +34 951 579226
Contact me for a no obligation investment product and/or portfolio review and at my expense on +34 654 898 303/+44 77230 27864 or email me at jonathan.holdaway@chasebuchanan.com I’ll even buy the coffee.
FOOD,DRINK & TRAVEL
38
November 20th - December 3rd 2019
Grapes of wrath
THE climate crisis is drying up Spain’s wine industry. Production this year has fallen more steeply than any other country in Europe, according to the International Organisation of Vine and Wine. Spain saw a 24% drop compared to an average 10% decrease across the rest of the world, The country produced 34.3 million hectolitres of vino in 2019, compared to 46.6 million hectolitres in Italy and 41.9 million in France where output fell by only 15%. Portugal was the only country in Europe where wine production increased, rising from 10% to 6.7 million hectolitres.
Big cheese A SPANISH cheese has been voted among the top three best in the world at the World Cheese Awards. The annual event, considered the ‘Oscars’ of cheese awards, compiled a list of the top 16 best in the world and put Spain’s Torta del Casar Virgen del Prado in third place, behind Nazionale del Parmigiano Reggiano of Italy in second and the United States’ winning Organic Blue Cheese Rogue. Virgen del Prado was made by Queseria Dona Francisca, a company founded in 2011 in the town of Casar de Caceres, Extremadura. The award-winning cheese can be purchased in wheels of 350g for €8, 600g for €12 and 900g for €17.
Green streets Andalucia and Spain’s islands islands boast the country’s ‘most veggie’ cities GRANADA has been declared the most vegetarian city in Spain, according to a new study. It is joined by Santa Cruz de Tenerife and Palma de
Mallorca in the Top Three of Spain’s ‘ m o s t veggie’ destinations. Barcelona beats Madrid for the most non-meat restaurants and is also the fourth most veggie city overall. Meanwhile, Catalunya and Valencia are Spain’s top veggie regions, according to research by vegan and veggie website www.happycow.net. Salamanca is the fifth most anti-meat metropolis followed by Santiago, Girona, Tarragona, Valencia and Alicante. Calculations were made by comparing population sizes against the proportion of city eateries with vegan or veggie menus. Granada has one of these restaurants per 17,905 inhabitants, which according to researchers is a ‘pleasant surprise’, given the city’s fame for meaty delicacies.
Researchers also found that 7.8% of Spaniards claim to have reduced their meat consumption. They discovered that 6.3% of the country claims to be ‘flexitarian’, meaning they opt for a plant-based diet with the merest nod to their carnivore origins. It comes as just 1.3% of those polled said they were vegetarian, while just 0.2% identified as vegan. The report also highlights changing Spanish food habits, such as plantbased snack foods like cabbage chips and seaweed products. Research was conducted for World Vegan Month in November, when thousands of carnivores take the Veg Pledge and switch to plant-based diets.
Scary spice
DEADLY mycotoxins have been discovered in over 70% of spices. The substance, which is produced by mould and can cause illness and even death in humans and animals, was found mainly in nutmeg and paprika. The study by the Organisation of Consumers and Users (OCU) found two types of mycotoxins - Ocratoxin A, Aflatoxin B1 or both - in 71% of spice products, especially those derived from pepper. The OCU is now asking the European Commission to find measures to avoid it. Though the mycotoxins in spices do not constitute an immediate risk, the OCU say it should be taken into account for the ‘total intake of someone’s diet’.
Starry nights
A CELEBRITY Marbella chef is bidding farewell to his three Michelin stars as restaurateurs countrywide wait for news of this year’s awards at the upcoming Michelin Gala in Spain. Dani Garcia will mark the closure of his eponymous restaurant in Marbella, opened in 2014, with a ‘Last Supper,’ attended by local culinary giants, friends and relatives. The 43-year-old chef announced the closure of the restaurant just one month after it received its third Michelin star last year. But as one star fades, another may soon to be born: the Andalucian chef Benito Gomez is pinning his hopes on earning a second Michelin star for his Ronda-based Bardal restaurant. The new star winners will be announced at the 2020 Spain & Portugal Michelin Guide Gala, which takes place in Sevilla on Wednesday.
Early Christmas THE Three Kings have sprinkled some early magic in the Sierra Nevada. Spain’s top ski resort has invested €9 million as it gears up for another exciting season on the slopes. Cash injections for restoration work and new runs promise to make this one of the best winters ever. The announcements were made by Cetursa boss, Jesus Ibañez at the presentation of the 2019/20 winter season in Madrid. In terms of tracks there will be a new route from the summit of Veleta to Pradollano, linking tracks on the south slope. While a second route has been created through Loma de Dílar, following popular demand. A total of 33 new snow cannons are set to produce the same amount of snow in half the time, meaning the environment benefits as well as skiers. There will be around 30 events, including Snowrunning, Potholes, School, and Veterans. But perhaps the most exciting will be the Snowboardcross event, on March 6 and 7, next year, featuring legendary athletes like Lucas Eguibar and Regino Hernandez.
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November 20th - December 3rd 2019
As the first dates fall from Europe’s only date palm grove – in Elche – Joshua Parfitt uncovers their Islamic origins
FOOD,DRINK & TRAVEL
First
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OTHING could better describe Spain than ‘devils on horseback’ – the food, I mean. Dates wrapped in bacon are the epitome of Moorish cultural advancement smothered with the proud, sweaty pork of the Castilian reconquest. They symbolise the celebrated Moros y Cristianos festivals – so popular in the Valencian Community, but found in various places around Spain – in just one bite. It is no coincidence, then, that Spain is home to Europe’s only date palm grove, in the city of Elche on the Costa Blanca. It even has UNESCO status and - yes - against all the odds, Europe produces Medjool dates using a Yemenite tradition of irrigation. This ancient and innovative Arabic watering system allowed cultivation of a cornucopia of crops, from pomegranates to citric fruits and vegetables to grains in one of Spain’s most arid and inhospitable climates.
Muslim
Through this irrigation system, 30-minute intervals of water were auctioned off to Muslim farmers each day. And it still survives intact in the centre of this 200,000-strong city today. The thousands of 30ft-high palm trees – though emblematic – were actually deployed as sort of large masculine parasols cuckolded by the stumpier female shrubs enjoying shade, attention and pruning beneath. The Palmeral de Elche follows so closely its Muslim engineers that the UN named it a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2001. Dubbing it a ‘cultural landscape inherited from the days of Al-Andalus’ it celebrates the ‘transfer of landscape and agricultural practices from Moorish North Africa to Christian Europe’ – but
A date with destiny
THE first bunch of dates has been ceremoniously cut from a date palm in Elche. Dozens of people, including the Greek consul, joined town hall bosses in La Hoya to witness the historic event, organised by the agricultural collective Datelx. The municipality’s date palms date back to the fifth century BC, when they are believed to have been planted by the Carthaginians. Those gathered at the cutting were even treated to a lunch, which used local dates as the star ingredient. shh, they wrapped it in bacon so no one will ever find out! Each autumn – October 18, to be precise – the Elche date harvest begins (see above) and it goes on for weeks in the 100-odd palm groves that take up 3.5 km2 of prime land – about 40 football pitches – in and around the city of Elche. Incredibly, until very recently the thousands of trees were actually pollinated by hand – despite date palms being both male and female. But now, modernity has finally moved in with Norwegian company DatElx planting 8,000 laboratory-germinated specimens that yield a
heavier crop, but the company only just this year learned how to refrigerate the dates yearround, so don’t expect any to appear in Mercadona any time soon. For now the best way to pick the grapes is to basically shin up the tree like a monkey. There are few crops as dangerous to harvest as a date palm. One 75-year-old ‘palmero’ from Elche, Pascual, told me he was first forced up a 30ft palm tree when he was seven. “It was pretty terrifying,” he told me from a market stall selling woven white palm fronds – the other crop from Elche’s Palmeral, used in Sem-
ana Santa celebrations. “My brother actually fell down and has walked with a limp ever since.”
HEALTH CROP Dried fruit is a misnomer for dates – they are berries from one of the world’s tallest plants in the grass family. They can be eaten fresh, dried or confit, in the same order of increasing sweetness. “Dried, they are perfect for people practising sports,” insists Miguel Angel Sanchez, president of the Elche Asociacion de Palmeros. Dates feature large quantities of calcium, copper and potassium, all wrapped up in a nice bundle of fibre.
FOOD,DRINK & TRAVEL
dates
Devils on horseback
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November 20th - December 3rd 2019
Veal tagine with dates
XMAS FEAST
The slow-release sugars and portable shape make them a real sportsman’s friend and the dark-brown delicacies (whose name comes from the Greek for ‘finger’) have been claimed to aid heart trouble, intestinal issues, diabetes and anemia, as well as combating stress and aiding weight loss. But science and statistics aside, what other foods are so naturally sticky, gooey and sweet you could feed it to a child without a sugar coating? And you can feed them without worry too: they contain just 0.2% fat.
The Spanish traditionally give dates at Christmas time, and of course eat them as devils on horseback. The vast majority may be from Egypt (the world’s largest exporter with one million tonnes, compared to Elche’s paltry 15 tonnes) but with every date harvest come new calls to create a domestic and international market. If they succeed, it would be a cultural accomplishment in these days of globalisation. Though potatoes, corn and rice have all moved around the world through trade, no one grows potatoes like an Andean, corn like a Mesoamerican, nor rice like a south-east Asian. Likewise, no one could locate with certainty the precise patch of Irish dirt where the first South American potato was planted. But in Elche, ever since its first Christian ruler, Don Manuel insisted in 1270 that any new settlers ‘should use the same irrigation system as the Moors’, the tradition has continued unbroken. With threats coming from a string of urbanisations, climate change and a decline in farmers, the city faces a task to keep this rare multicultural success story alive.
Get educated Rose Moore sees the EU, essentially, as a political dictatorship (Leave and proud, Issue 325, pg 7). The . There opposite is thers reality n are 28 sovereign states, of baco · 12 rashe UK, which voluntarily chose to become including the dates · 2 dozend.ripe Steve Dunne believes that the UK would associate ndsso. I’m not going to almoNot eled unpe 2 dozen ·fair terms. WTO on better chapter and by quoting page letters your weigh down . dates 1. Remove pits from the into the verse, but I recommend that Steve looks meoverTrump dsThat thehealmon brown pan, knows. that 2. In a frying industry of any specifics they asshould soonUK As oil. little very with EU-free heat an with dium deal trade a get to is trying the pan from trade them remo deals ed,want Trump’s know: have to ve all you youbrown tell s. towel paper labels. Finally, Brent Mahler speaks for onto US-first have ing wrappforce of an forarmed fit EU citizens a size of UKrashe r towary a3.number Cut bacon an ever closer union. However, these are ideas and a date. I am EU, policy. specific floated by almon replacing dates the not insideand dspeople 4. Place worried at the insidious 40-plus years of promorepit. the Telegraph, paganda against the EEC/EU by the Mail, . Fix bacon a slice did dateofwith What each and, TheofSun. course, 5. WrapTimes Express, to ul caref being stick, ail cockt ana so was with he why her asked toget say when he was Murdoch stick theI go d. (The into “When the almon of:that lines is avoid Somethin theidea g along ti-EU? does that bacon of the The EU.”not the to it I go whenso holds I say: do what theyends 10 the No. g.) bakin g ent! durin appointm an loose for ask to come had he that is on implicati
6. Preheat the oven to 190ºC, put the skewers in and leave them to cook for 8-10 minutes.
· 3 cloves of garlic · 2 bunch of spring onions Rose sees ther EU, essentially, as a politi· 40g Moor unsaleted butte cal dictatorship (Leave and proud, Issue 325, pg 7). ·The 1 ½kg veal reality is the opposite. There are 28 sovereign · 1 pinch saffro n states , including the UK, which voluntarily chose · 1becom to teaspeoon assoc cinna iated. mon Steve Dunne believes that the UK would fairpepp better · 1 pinch black er on WTO terms. Not so. I’m not going to weigh down your letters page by · 2 pinch es salt quoting chaptfine er and verse, but I recommend that ·Steve 150glooks honeinto y the specifics of any industry that · 250g dates he knows . That Trump is trying to get a trade deal with an blanc EU-freehed · 125g UKalmo should telltoast you all nds, edyou want to know: Trump’s trade deals have US-first labels. FiPeel the garlic clove s and cut very nally, Brent Mahler speaks for a numbfine the er ofwith UK citispring onion s. EU armed zens wary of an force and an ever closer Add butte r and oliveare oilideas to a floated cast-iron union cassec. Howev er, these by specifi role pan, and once hot add the mince ddgarlic people and not EU policy. I am more worrie at the, onionus s and veal. insidio 40-plu s years of propaganda against the Add saffro n, cinna mon, pepp er, salt and honEEC/EU by the Mail, Telegraph, Expre ss, Times and, ey.course Moist, en pan with enou gh water to cover of The Sun. What did Murdo ch say when thewas meat and simm er for 90 minu tes. he asked why he was so anti-EU? Something Add dates andof:almon and cook along furthe the lines “WhendsI go into No. for 10 they dor 30 minu what I say:tes. when I go to the EU.” The implic ation is Serve with cousc ous. that he had to ask for an appoin tment!
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November 20th - December 3rd 2019
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November 20th - December 3rd 2019
Clubs down SPAIN has defied European golf trends that have seen 150,000 young players dump the sport during the last decade. Since 2009, a 35% decrease in the number of youngsters teeing off in Europe, has caused the total of licensed players to drop to just 287,890. The findings come from KPMG’s Golf Participation Report for Europe, which found that Spain has 37,425 licensed players, and therefore the largest market in Europe. In a bid to make the sport more accessible, Discovery has launched GolfTV and several clubs now use more technology. Gerard Tsobanian, who is responsible for organising this year’s Open de España said there is also a plan in place to ‘promote golf as a sport in schools’.
GOLF
19
Sponsored by Fergusson’s Estepona
near Santander, was due to host the event, but gale force winds at the resort caused five trees to be uprooted and seriously damaged the green. Officials were forced to delay the event just two days before it was due to start. The tournament will now take place between December 11 and 13.
An Andalucian could enter the record books at the Costa del Sol Open by becoming the first female to win it three times
BATTLE: Local girl Azahara Munoz (left) and Dutch title-winner Anne van Dam (right) Currently 42nd in the glob- title in four years and the become the first three-time al rankings, the Spaniard €300,000 prize. champion in the competiwill bid to claim her third If successful, Muñoz would tion’s 37-year-history. Started in 1982, the tournament has so far only had LA Manga Golf Resort has two double champions, joined forces with the La- Muñoz and legendary Brit dies European Tour and golfer Laura Davies. is to host the qualification The choice of Aloha Golf stage for the tournament in this year, which offers January. mountain views, ends the The north and south cours- club’s three-year wait for es will host both the four- hosting duties. round pre-qualifying stage La Quinta Golf & Country between January 15-18, Club hosted the 2018 event, and the five-round final while the 2017 championstage on January 22-26. ships were at the Real Club The five-star hotel has de Golf Guadalmina. played host to four pre- “It makes me very excited vious editions, with such to play the Spanish Open names as Anna Nordqvist, again, since it is a very speCaroline Masson, Caroline cial tournament for me for Hedwall and Jodi Ewart many reasons,” said Muñoz. Shadoff taking the honours She added: “Playing at in 2008, 2009, 2010 and home always motivates me 2011 respectively. because I know that I will The women have gone on be surrounded by my peoto represent Europe mul- ple and my family and that tiple times in the Solheim is something that encouragCup. es me to try to do my best.”
Stage is set
Monthly round-up This month has seen the playing of a Medalford (nine holes medal play with
Autumn on the two Alcaidesa courses can be so very different with late summer balmy shorts weather being followed in the next game by chilly autumnal thermals weather, and the next day playing in the gale-force wind. Whatever the day brings in, the hardy souls of the ex-Estepona Golf Society turn up at the first tee unless it is raining cats and dogs.
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History in the making?
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If you think you have what it takes to help the Olive Press expand to its next level please get in touch at accounts@theolivepress.es at the first instance, sending your CV and a covering letter. These jobs could be part time or full time and will suit either man or woman of any age or colour or background.
ESTE
THE Santander Women’s Championship has found a new home 450km away, after it was postponed due to bad weather. The 2019 tournament will now take place at Santander’s own course, Golf Santander, in the Spanish capital. The luxury golf resort is 16km from the centre of Madrid. The world famous Real Golf de Pedrena,
The Olive Press is looking for a sorcerer to weave some magic in its head office as we expand yet again. You’ll be an energetic resourceful individual, to become the glue in the young and rapidly expanding team. Personable and bi-lingual you will have a good phone manner, be sociable and naturally computer literate.
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SON’S FERGUS PONA
New golf home
GOLFING heavyweights will again go toe to toe at the Women’s Andalucia Costa del Sol Open, it has been announced. Dutch title-holder Anne van Dam returns to Marbella’s Aloha club for her title defense from November 28 to December 1. The 24-year-old will need to fend off the Andalucian 2016 and 2017 champion, Azahara Muñoz. Muñoz, 31, who was born in Doña Mencia outside Cordoba, was also the runner-up at last year’s championships.
Office wizard
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stableford on the back nine) which was won by Gordon Storey, an early start away day at Marbella Golf & Country Club won by Clive Dench and Bob Henderson, and the normal Stableford competitions during the month where the winners were Mike Orr, Martin O’Callaghan, Geoff Scott, the visiting Jim Edwards and Ron Ramsay. The Alcaidesa resort will, from Novem-
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ber 22 to 30 must the final of the Junior European Championships on both courses. It is a pleasure to see the expertise displayed by these young budding golfers who in the past have included Justin Rose and Luke Donald (both former world Number ones), on the courses we play on regularly. May your drives go straight and your putts run true.
tel: 685 280 713 andrewfergusson21@gmail.com Avda. Espana, 168, Estepona
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MOTORS Slowing down HE’S famed for whizzing around in sports cars like the Nissan GT-R, Mercedes SLR, McLaren 650S and Ferrari 458 Italia. But Spain’s two-time Formula One World Champion, Fernando Alonso, has revealed the boring ‘everyday’ motor he uses for trips to Mercadona. ‘A Lexus’ was the unexpected answer the 38-year-old gave when quizzed by a journalist on the subject. The legendary racer revealed the Toyota-manufactured Lexus was his ride of choice for ‘private trips’ around his hometown of Oviedo.
DISCREET: Alonso is a moderate motorist
Porsche ups the pace
PORSCHE has chosen Marbella to unveil the first electric car in its 88-year history. Lucky members of the public at the Porsche Marbella Center got an exclu-
45
November 20th - December 3rd 2019 sive look at the new ‘Taycan’ model, two months ahead of its release. Intended to rival electric car giant Tesla’s ‘Model S’, the Taycan sports an 800volt electrical system, twice the power of any other electric vehicle. The car, which can reach 80% of its battery capacity in less than 23 minutes, will retail for €152,136 when it goes on sale from mid-January 2020.
Mercedes Marbz
Amp it up
MERCEDES-Benz is in Marbella for the global launch of its flashy latest model. The event took days of preparation and saw a fleet of trailers stacked with exhibition equipment moving into the resort, causing long traffic tailbacks in the town centre. The German luxury car firm’s big reveal was enough to attract hundreds of VIP cliente, journalists and influencers from 24 countries and will generate 2,800 overnight hotel stays locally. The event at the Palacio de Congresos runs until November 25.
Spain must accelerate plans for electric charging points to meet emission targets, says car boss THE head of Spain’s largest car company has warned that a million more electric charging points are needed in the country by 2040. Seat president Luca de Meo said that the extra charging stations were needed to meet the EU’s emission reduction targets. It comes after Spain’s transport boss Pere Navarro said the government had ‘made a mistake’ in supporting electric cars because of the ‘lack’ of charging points across the country. The 52-year-old motoring chief made the remarks during a business breakfast, in which he spoke of the challenges facing the automobile industry. “We can continue manufacturing hundreds of thousands of electric vehicles, but we need approximately 800,000
recharging points by 2040 to meet targets,” he said. Meo recommended changing some of the 11,600 petrol stations across Spain into electric charging stations to accelerate the electric car revolution. He also advocated a green tax to encourage more motorists to make the switch to electric from petrol and diesel, saying that it was a ‘key move’ in the plan to get Spain to zero emissions. “It is inexcusable that the average age of a car in our country is 12 years and that this is set to increase,” he said. “We must encourage people to replace their cars with low and zero emission vehicles through green tax policies and better facilities for charging,” he said.
Wheel good advice
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November 20th - December 3rd 2019
The OTHER little Red Book And why it deserves its place in history alongside Chairman Mao’s, writes Belinda Beckett
now, chefs are either breaking out the Vega Sicilia or sobbing into their souffles. And every Joe Bloggs in the blogosphere is beating a path to their doors with selfie sticks to claim the
bragging rights on Facebook. With apologies to Chairman Mao, no other little red book has such global influence with its MI6 style-secretive inspectors and flower-shaped stars
Last of the summer fines Giles Brown celebrates the freedom of the roads off-season … with a few provisos
NOW that the summer crowds have migrated north, you don’t have to approach each trip into town like a cross between the Dakar Rally (water, GPS system, local currency for parking meters) and ‘Mad Max’. It’s not all easy-going, however. The, ahem, ‘eccentric’ driving styles of many of the chromed-up 4x4s and AMG Mercs with German number plates that you may have seen roaring along the coast means that you have to keep your wits about you. It’s also a wise move to be at one with your inner self and develop a zen-like sense of calm. This is especially true if someone comes up hard and fast behind you and starts flashing to get you to move over – even if you are unable to at that precise moment. I find a cheery wave when you finally let them past infuriates them even more. All in all, however, it’s not been a great month for me on the road. I broke the unbreakable Landcruiser
again, but the upside was that the grua driver was an old friend of mine. Although to be honest I’ve been in contact with the tow truck companies so many times over the past few years that I’m on first name terms with most of them. I’ll be a little upset if I don’t get Christmas cards. Then there was the rather large fine I received while delivering the fine publication that you are holding in your hands. I stuck the Landcruiser in a ‘loading and unloading’ area and, on my return, found a police officer firmly placing a ticket on the windscreen. When I politely pointed out that I was in fact unloading, he (equally firmly) replied that this was only for commercial vehicles. “It’s the law”, he said, fixing me with the sort of look that convinced me any further
argument might result in anything from a quick look through my documents to a full cavity search, then and there, at the side of the road. My mood wasn’t lightened by the fact that, later that afternoon, I was driving on one of the Banus back roads and spotted a small speedboat parked on a bend. I know the proper technical term is usually moored, but this was marooned high and dry on the roadside. I spluttered my indignation and wondered what the fine would be for that particular traffic infraction. If there wasn’t one, I wondered, perhaps I should just start delivering by boat and declare myself an offshore financial haven. Either that or a piratical paper delivery service! I drove on and debated if it was too early for rum...
whose addition or subtraction can make or break a chef, a restaurant, sometimes even a destination. Even the F-Word fierce Gordon Ramsay cried when Michelin took two of his away. And to think it all started out as a freebie motoring manual given away to sell tyres. There were fewer than 3,000 cars on French roads in 1900 when the Michelin brothers had the foresight to publish a book of route maps with tips on fixing the Bugatti and listings of places to grab a baguette and a bed for the night. Star ratings started in 1926 – the beginning of our anal interest in food. Bibendum the Michelin tyre mascot has also survived (in a slimmed-down version, and minus the pince-nez), along with his rather un-PC motto (for a motoring guide): ‘Nunc est bibendum’ – ‘Now is the time to drink’. But not everyone’s reaching for the stars. Some chefs don’t want the pressure. Marco Pierre White handed all three of his back in 1999, spitting: “I was being judged by people
who had less knowledge than me!” The late esteemed food critic A.A. Gill had harsher words, writing that it had ‘blighted the lives of chefs from Brooklyn to Bombay while spawning legions of checklist gourmands populating unreadable internet blogs and nerds who photograph their own lunch’. Everyone but the French suspect it is a tool of Gallic imperialism that cooks the books in favour of French cuisine (France has more stars than any country except Japan). And although some Michelin inspectors don’t
OP Puzzle solutions
Quick Crossword
Across: 7 Evade, 8 Romance, 10 Nowhere, 11 Tower, 12 Danish, 13 Player, 15 Deride, 17 Evicts, 21 Caber, 23 Toddler, 24 Outcome, 25 Niche. Down: 1 Pernod, 2 Taiwan, 3 Released, 4 Trees, 5 Emit, 6 Nearer, 9 Newly, 14 Loved one, 15 Doctor, 16 Rabat, 18 Calico, 19 Shriek, 20 Steel, 22 Rook.
SUDOKU
W
HAT’S red, makes chefs nervous and helped us win the war? Clue – the 110th Spain & Portugal edition just came out at a star-studded gala event in Sevilla. Did you guess the Michelin Guide? If the war bit threw you, it did me too. There are Michelin Guides in more than 25 countries and cities and publication day is as big as the Hollywood Oscars. In restaurant kitchens throughout the Iberian Penisula right
COLUMNISTS
even tell their wives what they do, beans have been spilled a b o u t non-existent restaurant visits and a chronic shortage of inspectors – one 2014 report claimed there were only 120 worldwide. However, the one inarguable reason to cherish the Michelin Guide is for the part it played in liberating France from the Germans during WW2. No kidding! In 1944 it was the only book in the world with up-to-date French street maps, and a special print run stamped ‘For official use only’ was distributed to every Allied forces officer. And so it was that the D-Day Landings were led by men brandishing copies of the Michelin Guide. No wonder the Nazis ran!
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SPORT Clawing Striking out ahead 47
November 20th - December 3rd 2019
Lionel sum
LIONEL Messi has been revealed to be the highest paid sports star of the year, according to Forbes, surpassing Juventus star and footballing rival Cristiano Ronaldo. The Barcelona ace earned €115 million this year, while Ronaldo made €100 million and Neymar, who spent four years at the Camp Nou before moving to Paris Saint-Germain, received €94 million. On the list, too, was Mexican boxer Canelo Alvarez and tennis superstar Roger Federer. Former Barca playmaker Andres Iniesta was the only Spaniard to make the top 50.
David Villa waves adios to the sport that brought him adoration across Spain SPAIN’S all-time leading goalscorer, David Villa, has announced his retirement from football at the end of the season, ending his spellbinding 20-year career. One of the least appreciated players in modern football, Villa earned his first international cap in 2005 and went on to score 59 goals for his country - 15 more than second-place Raul, and 22 more than third-place Fernando Torres. The striker started his career at Sporting de Gijon, before
moving to Zaragoza, then to Valencia, where he made his mark as one of La Liga’s most prolific goal scorers. Barcelona brought Villa to the Camp Nou in 2010 for €40 million and he enjoyed three seasons in Catalunya before heading to Atletico Madrid.
Nada for Nadal
RAFAEL Nadal crashed out of a major tennis tournament, only four hours after lifting a world number one trophy. The 33-year-old Spaniard was beaten by Greek Stefanos Tsitsipas in the ATP Finals in London on Friday. It was the third time he has been knocked out of this season-ending spectacle in the group stages. Nadal, winner of 2019’s French and US Opens, tipped Djokvic to the number one title for the fifth consecutive year. He will now be setting his sights on the trophy at the Davis Cup, which is taking place in Madrid this week.
For the later stages of his career, he moved to the USA, to play for New York City, and then Japan, teaming up once again with Andres Iniesta, this time at Vissel Kobe where he is finishing his esteemed career. The 37-year-old has scored 12 goals so far this season, his career total being 376 goals in 752 games. Villa will be best known for his time at Barcelona where he, Lionel Messi and Pedro made up a devastating attacking trio under Pep Guardiola at Barca, in what’s often labelled as the best club side of all time. For his national side, Villa helped Spain emerge victorious in the 2008 European Championship and the 2010 World Cup.
LOBSTER customers can now surf the internet more and for longer at no extra cost, as we have increased data by up to double across all tariff plans. The Small Plan now has 4GB per month, the Medium Plan 10GB, and the Large Plan 25GB. All Lobster tariff plans continue to include unlimited calls and texts in Spain, as well as the UK and other countries. Everyone gets the increase in data, both new customers and current customers. Our tariff plans are tailor-made for British expats and other English speakers who reside in Spain. Our prices start from just 12€ per month VAT included. We pride ourselves on being the only mobile operator in Spain to offer a service completely in English, and in addition to unlimited calls and texts in Spain and the UK, all our tariff plans also include unlimited calls and texts to Denmark, Germany, Gibraltar, Ireland, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Sweden and the USA. Our brand was created to establish and maintain an emotional bond with British values and service. So far, our winning formula that has appealed to over 10,000 happy Lobster customers in just nine months and we’re growing rapidly. Tony Watts, marketing director of the company, said: “We are always listening to our customers’ feedback and it is important to us that our customers have the highest levels of satisfaction.” Signing up for the service can be done through any one of the over 600 retail stores. Customers can also easily find the closest store to them using the store finder our website Lobster.es. If customers prefer, they can also sign up online or by calling us at our contact centre for free on 1661, where all our agents are English-speaking. To top it off, we have extended our promotion of ‘first month for free’ for a limited time.
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After Rosalia’s slanging match with Vox, where she cussed them on social media and they scrutinised her for flying in private planes, the singer has returned to using commercial air travel.
Puppy fat
TEMPERS had to be calmed and security called at a VOX party rally in Barcelona when one attendee said to another: “I am not Spanish? I am more Spanish than you - you have a monkey face.”
Space Sevilla Sevilla has been selected to hold the next ministerial summit, where it will be decided when
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Your expat
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Vol. 13 Issue 331 www.theolivepress.es November 20th - December 3rd 2019
My mate Marmite SUN, sea and sangria are all very well but most expat Brits still yearn for a taste of home, a poll has revealed. A Great British cup of tea, along with crumpets and Marmite top the list of comfort foods and beverages they crave after moving abroad. Other delights, such as Heinz salad cream, Bovril and Scotland’s speciality drink Irn Bru are also firm favourites. The poll of 1,000 expats by
New poll reveals the food and drink British expats just can’t live without
the British Corner Shop also found marmalade, custard, back bacon, mustard and Twiglets on the list. And an incredible two thirds said they missed foods from home, while 52% said they missed traditional British pubs. “Moving abroad can be tre-
Sail away for €300m A SUPERYACHT, currently based in Malaga, has gone on the market for €300 million. The 100-metre long megayacht Octopus, which has eight diesel engines, is owned by Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen, who passed away last year. It is the fourth time the 9,000 ton yacht has docked in Malaga.
mendously exciting,” explained the company’s Alex Kortland. “But often it’s only once you’ve settled somewhere else you realise there are certain things which are much harder to get hold of. “They may seem small and insignificant but sometimes you want that little taste of home. “Short of making extra visits to the UK or forcing guests to bring jars of Marmite out with them, we’ve been helping Brits satisfy their cravings for over 20 years.” While some said they missed Tennent’s lager and cod roe, one expat insisted it was Whiskers Crunch for her cat.
CRAVINGS: Expats miss the taste of crumpets Among the Top 30 favourites are: Tea Marmite Gravy Biscuits Baked beans Pies Pickles Sausages Crumpets Squash Bovril Mustard Salad Cream Marmalade Irn Bru Custard Malt Vinegar Scones
au revoir
ANDALUCIAN schools are saying au revoir to French. The Junta’s Education Ministry has said it wants to scrap French as a compulsory subject in the first year of the Baccalaureate. The move has been condemned by teaching staff as a ‘setback.’ The French Teachers’ Union said the decision would ‘throw multilingualism on the scrapheap’ and roll back progress to language learning. Almost half of the students in Andalucia (47.7%) choose to study French, more than those in any other region of Spain. Instead of being forced to study a second foreign language in their first year of the Baccalaureate, pupils may now choose to study Anatomy, Music or IT instead.
Ham fisted
A SHOPLIFTER has been charged with stealing a leg of ham from a supermarket. The Calpe local reportedly used ‘baggy clothing’ to hide the cured jamon Iberico, which can weigh up to 8kg and measures almost 90cm. She was arrested along with three others involved in a ‘Christmas campaign’ to steal chocolates, perfume, makeup kits, turrones and cockles worth more than €500 from supermarkets.